tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83400751219931908822018-03-18T20:21:25.476+09:00Steve's Game BlogWriting portfolio of Steven BogosSteven Bogosnoreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-65431249800327059382017-10-15T13:35:00.001+09:002017-10-15T13:36:35.985+09:00Hyper MagazineHey everyone! Got a bit of news for followers of Steve's Game Blog.<br /><br />I recently wrote a couple of feature articles on commission for Hyper Magazine. The edition (268) is now currently on sale! Pick it up if you're still one of those physical magazine reading types. The articles I wrote are "Battlegrounds of Eternity: The Best Maps of All Time" and "The Rise and Fall of Team Fortress 2".<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UDG53790VGA/WeLlIQgvNTI/AAAAAAAADvU/OMHsrObwnU4EavOfZDlFayuZ80v8a4xowCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/22491980_10156922964494657_2436687065746698320_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UDG53790VGA/WeLlIQgvNTI/AAAAAAAADvU/OMHsrObwnU4EavOfZDlFayuZ80v8a4xowCK4BGAYYCw/s400/22491980_10156922964494657_2436687065746698320_n.jpg" width="220" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6nytNar48eE/WeLlGUr1A5I/AAAAAAAADvM/wOS70Mt52YsB5KCgcL8hH7yx_qZJ7kzKQCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/22366383_10156922964599657_1311683833547095395_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6nytNar48eE/WeLlGUr1A5I/AAAAAAAADvM/wOS70Mt52YsB5KCgcL8hH7yx_qZJ7kzKQCK4BGAYYCw/s400/22366383_10156922964599657_1311683833547095395_n.jpg" width="220" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kx4-_SuWDDE/WeLlJ7V3CnI/AAAAAAAADvc/Un3qYU0GBgsrjt-H2JYIQZoGgDtOcN2uACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/22366261_10156922964559657_826254658044951546_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kx4-_SuWDDE/WeLlJ7V3CnI/AAAAAAAADvc/Un3qYU0GBgsrjt-H2JYIQZoGgDtOcN2uACK4BGAYYCw/s400/22366261_10156922964559657_826254658044951546_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-48720616181822912942017-08-30T09:06:00.001+09:002017-08-30T09:54:12.475+09:00Hearthstone's Druid Power Level: IT'S OVER 9000!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w7OLd34EyhY/WaX5B0rivoI/AAAAAAAADqc/o24SAqQsxy4preC43UNujN1H2nmb2eJSgCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/druid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w7OLd34EyhY/WaX5B0rivoI/AAAAAAAADqc/o24SAqQsxy4preC43UNujN1H2nmb2eJSgCK4BGAYYCw/s320/druid.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Right now in Hearthstone, the Druid class is absurdly powerful, and it's actually a very bad thing for the health of the game. It's not just a single deck either, as both Token Druid and Jade Druid are equally strong. Unlike other decks that have stabilized over time, as new strategies and counters have arisen, the Druid problem is so severe that it's actually effecting the meta. Unconventional decks like Exodia mage, which were fun gimmicky decks, have actually become viable in the meta because they are so effective at beating druid. We've really got a whole "Grim Patron" situation on our hands now: every single deck is either A) Druid, or B) deck that is specifically good against Druid, and that's bad because it limits creativity, and lessens the impact of a lot of cool cards and archetypes.<br /><br />Blizzard should not take a "wait and see" approach to this problem. The time for wait and see has passed, especially when you consider that&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/Appa_HS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&amp;ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.pcgamer.com%2Fwhat-should-be-done-to-fix-hearthstones-druid-problem%2F">41% of all games</a>&nbsp;being played are against Druids. They need to act <b>right now.</b><br /><b><br /></b><br /><h4>How did Druid get so powerful?</h4><div><br /></div><div>Druid has always been a popular, powerful class in Hearthstone, but the latest patch has given it the exact tools it needed to propel it into the unstoppable monster it is right now. Specifically: Spreading Plague and Ultimate Infestation. To understand why these cards are so powerful, you first need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the class.</div><div><br /></div><h3>Ramp it up</h3><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0p-KSjXE07E/WaX7Dy1yBCI/AAAAAAAADqo/RnZdnRtHN5ExWQIlqpPO67aV3rc_I7YFQCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/ultimate%2Binfestation.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0p-KSjXE07E/WaX7Dy1yBCI/AAAAAAAADqo/RnZdnRtHN5ExWQIlqpPO67aV3rc_I7YFQCK4BGAYYCw/s320/ultimate%2Binfestation.png" width="237" /></a></div><div>Ramp effects let you cheat out mana ahead of the usual curve, allowing you to play bigger minion and spells earlier in the game. They are countered by the fact that they cost a card, and have minimal effect on the board state. Playing Wild Growth on turn 2 means that you have one less card and no two drop on the board. Ramping has always been a gamble because it leaves you vulnerable, but Ultimate Infestation negates all of those negatives.</div><div><br /></div><div>A Druid player can spend the first four turns ramping up (Wild Growth, Jade Blossom, Nourish), and then just innervate out an Ultimate Infestation. He now likely controls the board, has healed, has replenished all the cards he spent ramping, and is a full <b>six mana </b>ahead of you. Just watch&nbsp;<a href="https://clips.twitch.tv/SourWimpyBunnyFreakinStinkin">this clip</a>&nbsp;to understand how stupid this combination is.</div><div><br /></div><h3>Wall of Scarabs</h3><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DTUxni4sBkE/WaX8xqbNDMI/AAAAAAAADq0/H0yrb0T2-NYRimVewJYCfZjvzf57YZ7XACK4BGAYYCw/s1600/spreading%2Bplague.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DTUxni4sBkE/WaX8xqbNDMI/AAAAAAAADq0/H0yrb0T2-NYRimVewJYCfZjvzf57YZ7XACK4BGAYYCw/s320/spreading%2Bplague.png" width="237" /></a>Traditionally, Druid's weakness has been big boards. It lacks the hard removal of Rogue and Priest, and the AOE removal of Mage and Warlock. The best way to play against a Druid is to put down multiple, high health creatures. Once the board has been flooded, its quite hard for them to regain control. This is a natural counter to both Jade/Ramp Druid AND Token Druid. Against Jade/Ramp Druid, it stops them from being too greedy. They have to play minions and fight for board control or they will be overwhelmed. Against Token Druid, it helps control their own waves of minions it tries to flood the board with.</div><div><br /></div><div>But here comes Spreading Plague, which a lot of the time reads: 5 Mana - Summon 7 1/5 Scarabs With Taunt. Not only does this card negate Druid's most major weakness by cockblocking the whole board, it also combos exceedingly well with cards like Power of The Wild, Mark of The Lotus and the new Bolster Bear. It's not uncommon for those 1/5's to become 2/6's, or even 3/7's within the same turn. Imagine a card that read: 6 Mana - Summon Seven 2/6 Scarabs with Taunt. Discard a card.</div><div><br /></div><h3>Innervation Intervention</h3><div><br /></div><div>All of these new tools circle back to Innervate, a card that has been a part of the core Druid kit since the beginning, and limits card design space more and more the longer it remains a part of the game. Again, Innervate is a card that was limited by the fact that it cost you a card. Yeah, you could cheat out a big drop on an early turn, but then you were down a card, and could get fucked over by hard removal. Now, Druids can use Innervate to cheat out Ultimate Infestation, which instantly replenishes their hand, negating its detrimental effect. Reynad made a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hd-7s5xuJck">strong case</a>&nbsp;on the removal of Innervate from Standard, which is a possible solution to the Druid problem.</div><div><br /></div><h4>What's the solution?</h4><div><br /></div><div>Whatever Blizzard decides on doing, it needs to happen <b>now, </b>before we have another Grim Patron/Undertaker Hunter situation on our hand. Shifting Innervate to Standard is a good solution, but I honestly believe that the two most offensive cards: Spreading Plague and Ultimate Infestation need to <b>additionally&nbsp;</b>be directly nerfed. Possible solutions:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Related image" src="http://wiki.teamliquid.net/commons/images/3/35/Innervate_hs.png" height="320" width="227" /></div><br /><div><ul><li><b>Ultimate Infestation: </b>8 Mana - Deal 5 Damage, Summon a 5/5 Ghoul, Gain 5 Armor - <i>This completely removes the card draw from the card, but still keeps it as a decent card, considering that Firelands portal is basically "Deal 5 Damage, Summon a 5/5", and is considered a good card for 7 mana.&nbsp;</i></li><li><b>Ultimate Infestation:</b> 10 Mana. Deal 4 Damage, Summon a 4/4 Ghoul, Gain 4 Armor, Draw 4 Cards -<i> This keeps the card draw but reduces all of the effects by 1. Honestly, I think it needs to go even further and reduce card draw to 3, but that would be a bit of overkill.</i></li><li><b>Spreading Plague: </b>5 Mana. Summon a 1/5 Scarab with Taunt. If your Opponent Has More Minions, Repeat up to Two Times - <i>This caps out the number of Scarabs that can be summoned at 3, which still provides a tool for defensive druid decks, but doesn't become absurdly powerful when combo'd with board buff spells.</i></li><li><b>Spreading Plague: </b>4&nbsp;Mana. Summon a 1/2 Scarab with Taunt for each enemy minion - <i>Sound familiar? This is basically Protect the King, a Warrior card that never saw play. 1/1 Tokens are pretty terrible, so buffing&nbsp;them up to 1/2 means that they can't just be whirlwinded away, but still die to big AOE effects like Flamestrike or Holy Nova (as they should).</i></li></ul></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-10314593251719993102017-07-27T11:53:00.000+09:002017-07-27T11:53:00.256+09:00Review: Aven Colony (Video)Hey guys! Had a bunch of free time on my hands this week so thought I would experiment with a video review. Haven't done one of these since waaaay back in 2012 with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikR2gxYctmk">Dishonored</a>&nbsp;so I'm trying the format out again.<br /><br />I would really appreciate as much feedback as you can offer on this one. Is it too long? Too negative? Is the quality of the video bad? Please leave comments!<br /><br />Enjoy!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/sY1YaGRDJDY/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sY1YaGRDJDY?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-34564558408573165852017-07-21T10:43:00.002+09:002017-08-30T08:24:00.986+09:00Copywriting PortfolioHere is a full folio of all of my published copywriting work, sorted by client.<br /><h2>Canny Projects:</h2><ul><li><a href="http://www.canny.com.au/canny-projects-add-sophistication-geelongs-corio-bay/">https://www.canny.com.au/canny-projects-add-sophistication-to-geelongs-corio-bay/</a></li><li><a href="http://www.canny.com.au/key-considerations-designing-open-floor-plan/">https://www.canny.com.au/key-considerations-when-designing-your-open-floor-plan/</a></li></ul><h2>Bodycare:</h2><div><ul><li><a href="https://www.bodycare.com.au/healthy-wealthy-wise-ultimate-guide-employee-retention-without-offering-raise/">https://www.bodycare.com.au/healthy-wealthy-wise-ultimate-guide-employee-retention-without-offering-raise/</a></li><li><a href="https://www.bodycare.com.au/office-ergonomics-really-worth-investment/">https://www.bodycare.com.au/office-ergonomics-really-worth-investment/</a></li><li><a href="https://www.bodycare.com.au/mental-health-workplace-keeping-workers-healthy-body-mind/">https://www.bodycare.com.au/mental-health-workplace-keeping-workers-healthy-body-mind/</a></li><li><a href="https://www.bodycare.com.au/workplace-wellness-programs-really-work/">https://www.bodycare.com.au/workplace-wellness-programs-really-work/</a></li><li><a href="https://www.bodycare.com.au/absenteeism-workplace-much-costing/">https://www.bodycare.com.au/absenteeism-workplace-much-costing/</a></li></ul></div><br />Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-80616816674796481122017-06-15T08:29:00.000+09:002017-06-15T09:29:32.624+09:00Who "Won" E3 This Year?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Hey guys. This is the first E3 in four years that I'm not working the show. It was nice to be actually able to sit back, relax, and simply enjoy the announcements as a consumer, rather than have to feverishly write everything up as a journalist, scouring the internet for even the tiniest morsels of new news. Now that all of the major companies have had their say, I've decided to do a little wrap-up. I hope you enjoy it!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pYTqaSGVtnc/WUG64JPVe4I/AAAAAAAADm8/zgcc2ccS84QU1S9nIJp3okcxNcxKD2k3wCLcBGAs/s1600/3194243-3e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="288" data-original-width="753" height="152" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pYTqaSGVtnc/WUG64JPVe4I/AAAAAAAADm8/zgcc2ccS84QU1S9nIJp3okcxNcxKD2k3wCLcBGAs/s400/3194243-3e.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Every year, there is this big debate over who "won" E3. It generally refers to the company that had the biggest showing of games people want to play, with the press conference that really ups the wow factor, and with the most down-to-earth attitude towards their fanbase. It's traditionally been a contest between the "big three" (Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft) but these days Bethesda, EA and Ubisoft also throw their hats in the ring. To understand who won, lets first have a look at who lost.<br /><br /><h3><b>Loser #1 (the worst loser): Sony</b></h3><b><br /></b>Oh how the mighty have fallen. Sony was unquestionably the "winner" of last year's E3, with a very strong showing of powerhouse games like the <i>Final Fantasy VII </i>remake, and a very consumer friendly approach that seemed to rebuff Microsoft's anti-consumer tenancies at every turn. This year, as well as having an incredibly lackluster assortment of games to show, with <a href="https://www.polygon.com/e3/2017/6/14/15800206/shadow-of-the-colossus-ps4-remake-e3">the <i>Shadow of The Colossus </i>remake</a>&nbsp;being the only really new thing shown, they also took the "dick move of the show" award by refusing to do cross-play with Microsoft and Nintendo. Here is what Sony's Jim Ryan literarlly said when confronted about Sony's lack of cross-play with <i>Minecraft </i>and <i>Rocket League:</i><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">"Yeah. We've got to be mindful of our responsibility to our install base. <i>Minecraft </i>- the demographic playing that, you know as well as I do, it's all ages but it's also very young. We have a contract with the people who go online with us, that we look after them and they are within the PlayStation curated universe. Exposing what in many cases are children to external influences we have no ability to manage or look after, it's something we have to think about very carefully."</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AJSMuh_jUaU/WUG569FdwwI/AAAAAAAADmk/dj6urh4TB7oqAZCSlnqWKV_qlcN_ap4NgCLcBGAs/s1600/shadow%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bcolossus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AJSMuh_jUaU/WUG569FdwwI/AAAAAAAADmk/dj6urh4TB7oqAZCSlnqWKV_qlcN_ap4NgCLcBGAs/s400/shadow%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bcolossus.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Yes, you heard that right, they don't want to do cross-play because "think of the children!" Even <b>Nintendo, </b>who have refused to do stuff like region-free gaming or online voice chat for the longest time due to "the children!" excuse are doing cross-play, while Sony isn't. Dick move Sony.<br /><br /><h3><b>Loser #2: Bethesda</b></h3><b><br /></b>Hey guys, do you remember when Bethesda made a game called <i>Skyrim? </i>Bethesda sure does! <i>S<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd-6hEmc2-Y">kyrim </a></i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd-6hEmc2-Y">is coming to the Switch!</a>&nbsp;I also hope you like VR because there's a fucktone of VR shit coming, even if you don't want it.<i>&nbsp;</i>There's a sequel to a game that <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7JbFBq4NAo">no-one really cared about</a>. Oh and remember paid mods, that clusterfuck of a dumb idea that turned Bethesda and Valve's reputation to shit? Well they are back, but we've disguised them as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRkrascT_iM">"Creation Club"</a>. The only saving grace from Bethesda was&nbsp;<i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHht8480cEo">Wolfenstein 2</a>,</i>&nbsp;which looks pretty fucking cool.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CIuJKN6__gY/WUG6jMiYVWI/AAAAAAAADm4/BD1jAVh2bCsB7r5Ylnk2SJHjPFxaz2H8ACLcBGAs/s1600/wolfenstien%2B2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CIuJKN6__gY/WUG6jMiYVWI/AAAAAAAADm4/BD1jAVh2bCsB7r5Ylnk2SJHjPFxaz2H8ACLcBGAs/s400/wolfenstien%2B2.png" width="400" /></a></div><h3><b>Loser #3: EA Games</b></h3><b><br /></b>"Hey lets just pump out a billion sequels to all of our successful franchises." EA's conference was so boring and uneventful that the only thing I can actually remember off the top of my head was that <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_q51LZ2HpbE">Battlefront 2</a> </i>looked pretty alright, but at this point you could slap a <i>Star Wars </i>logo on a turd sandwich and it would still sell gangbusters.<br /><br /><h3><b>Loser #4: Microsoft</b></h3><b><br /></b>The biggest thing to come out of Microsoft's conference was of course the Xbox One X: the final version of "Project Scorpio". For $499 US, it claims to bring 4k 60FPS gaming to the lowly console peasants. Most of the games they showed off with it were pretty meh, a bunch of sequels to games like <i>Forza, Crackdown, </i>and <i>Metro. </i>However, Microsoft revealed two pretty big showstoppers during their conference. The first was&nbsp;<i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zqz67Ha7II">Dragon Ball Fighter Z</a>, </i>which looks <b>fucking amazing </b>in 4K 60FPS and was the best game to show off the Xbox One X's tech. It is also being made by Arc System Works as a proper fighting game, and has a lot of FG fans super pumped up. This game is likely to become the new <i>Street Fighter </i>or <i>Marvel Vs. Capcom </i>as a competitive gaming staple, and as a <i>Dragonball Z </i>fan, that makes me super happy.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NtyuJw4ssoE/WUG6K982NjI/AAAAAAAADm0/Wq9dszTMS4U1FvYXFRA5kEYTOt1gITfpQCLcBGAs/s1600/xbox%2Bone%2Bx.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="379" data-original-width="772" height="196" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NtyuJw4ssoE/WUG6K982NjI/AAAAAAAADm0/Wq9dszTMS4U1FvYXFRA5kEYTOt1gITfpQCLcBGAs/s400/xbox%2Bone%2Bx.png" width="400" /></a></div>The second amazing game that Microsoft revealed was an indie game called&nbsp;<i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pupdeq1MoVw">The Last Night</a>. </i>This is the game I have been <b>dreaming </b>about ever since I first saw <i>Bladerunner. </i>It's a 2.5D pixelated cyberpunk platformer, set in a world where automation has replaced pretty much all labor and humans live for pleasure alone. The creator of the game fell into some bullshit controversy hole with manufactured outrage from social justice warriors, but it<a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DCK6O7FU0AEE-Pq.jpg"> hasn't really done anything to mar the game's reputation or anticipation</a>.<br /><br /><h3><b>Loser #5: Ubisoft</b></h3><b><br /></b>Ubisoft is not so much of a loser as it is "not a winner". It actually had a pretty decent showing. <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqH-iwA0ZmU">Mario&nbsp;+ Rabbids Kingdom Battle</a>&nbsp;</i>came waaaaay out of left field, but looks super fun. They also finally, <b>finally </b>revealed the long-in-development&nbsp;<i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAYN08YoaV8">Beyond Good and Evil 2</a>, </i>a game that fans have been waiting for for way too long. It's seriously the <i>Half-Life 3 </i>of the company. The rest was fairly predictable but inoffensive: a <i>Far Cry </i>sequel, an <i>Assassin's Creed </i>sequel, and some other little stuff. Ubisoft would have totally won E3 this year if it wasn't for the next company on this list...<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2mGsBbB5Tr4/WUG58kDc9QI/AAAAAAAADmo/GBfk4jYrYKANv8S5wFRwxbz5pGSmbJesACLcBGAs/s1600/mario%2B%252B%2Brabbids.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="447" data-original-width="800" height="222" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2mGsBbB5Tr4/WUG58kDc9QI/AAAAAAAADmo/GBfk4jYrYKANv8S5wFRwxbz5pGSmbJesACLcBGAs/s400/mario%2B%252B%2Brabbids.png" width="400" /></a></div><h3><b>Winner: Nintendo</b></h3><b><br /></b>The Switch, despite having a grand total of... zero worthwhile exclusive games (both <i>Zelda </i>and <i>Mario Kart </i>are available on Wii U), has a lot of ground to cover if it wants people to take it seriously. The Wii U suffered greatly from the problem of game drought - there simply weren't enough regular releases of new, worthwhile games to justify the console. My Wii U sat for months without being played while I patiently awaited the next big game. Nintendo took to E3 swinging this year, showing us a lot of games to get excited for.<br /><br /><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGQHQc_3ycE">Super Mario Odyssey</a>&nbsp;</i>looks freaking amazing, and is out in October. You can become a dinosaur. You can become a goomba. You can <b>become a taxi. </b>New&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ta54uEkVUao"><i>Yoshi</i></a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cc3PAAije0Y">Kirby</a>&nbsp;</i>assure us that there will be a steady flow of new Nintendo content through 2018. Exciting third-party partnerships, like the aforementioned <i>Mario&nbsp;+ Rabbids </i>and a <i>Rocket League </i>port shows that Nintendo is finally opening the door to third-parties, which will help with the game drought problem.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4gmEUl2-Ov8/WUG6BzIdqyI/AAAAAAAADmw/-gzGDTxMRPY5cfrfJeT7JuSk4IFhu5h6wCLcBGAs/s1600/Switch_SuperMarioOdyssey_illustration_01-720x720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="720" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4gmEUl2-Ov8/WUG6BzIdqyI/AAAAAAAADmw/-gzGDTxMRPY5cfrfJeT7JuSk4IFhu5h6wCLcBGAs/s320/Switch_SuperMarioOdyssey_illustration_01-720x720.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>But the biggest announcements from the company were ones that didn't even have trailers. <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFbDmTjS_MI">Metroid Prime 4 </a></i>was revealed with simply a logo, but absolutely stole the show. This is a game fans have waited <b>ten years </b>for. Alongside the news of another traditional <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhOx-FpEAQk"><i>Metroid </i>game for 3DS</a>, it was certainly a good year to be a Samus fan.<br /><br />The other huge news was a confirmation that a "core series" <i>Pokemon </i>game was coming to the Switch. You heard that right, Nintendo finally&nbsp;<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=images&amp;cd=&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiCyIrJsb7UAhVGi7wKHTPGBOMQjRwIBw&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.reddit.com%2Fr%2Fpokemon%2Fcomments%2F44r76a%2Fnintendos_back_up_plan%2F&amp;psig=AFQjCNEX5nmpysV5oWjSG0yXsM_RluKnKg&amp;ust=1497565816532375">broke the glass.</a>&nbsp;We got literally no other information on it, but that was more than enough to drive fans into a fervor. The idea of a <i>Pokemon </i>RPG, or even a <i>Pokemon MMO </i>in glorious console HD seems incredible. It also adds fuel to the fire that Nintendo plans to abandon the 3DS line, and simply push the Switch as <b>both </b>its home console and handheld focus.<br />So that's why I think Nintendo won E3 this year. If you disagree, be sure to let me know in the comments.<br /><br />Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-10663629585338937862017-05-18T11:05:00.001+09:002017-06-15T10:30:39.195+09:00Prey Ending Explained, Deconstructed, and Analyzed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RtdoIFB11fI/WRzh4fdMLZI/AAAAAAAADj4/3OwQhhSZm9EmQ3pSbR1gDcsws15_b9u4wCLcB/s1600/prey-listing-thumb-01-ps4-us-14jun16.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RtdoIFB11fI/WRzh4fdMLZI/AAAAAAAADj4/3OwQhhSZm9EmQ3pSbR1gDcsws15_b9u4wCLcB/s400/prey-listing-thumb-01-ps4-us-14jun16.png" width="400" /></a></div><b><br /></b><b>Warning: </b>before reading any further, you should know that this article contains <b>heavy </b><i>Prey </i>spoilers. If you haven't already finished the game, you really should go and do that first.<br /><br />So <i>Prey's </i>ending, or rather, endings, have left many fans scratching their heads thinking "what the heck just happened?" While it did consist of a rather cool twist, a lot of questions remained unanswered, and a lot of new ones are raised. We won't fully know exactly what the ending meant until the inevitable sequel, but for now, we can analyse the endings and come to some conclusions.<br /><br /><i>Prey </i>technically has three "main" endings with a handful of variants, and two "true" post-credits endings that vary (ever so slightly) depending on the choices you made in the game. We will look at each ending one-by-one, try to explain them, and then finish up with an overall explanation at the end to try and tie up all the loose ends.<br /><br /><h3><b>The December Ending: Escape in Alex's Escape Pod</b></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DsGVl7viSRs/WRzkZqkA8TI/AAAAAAAADkI/CQllmaRYNvsc1S-8Dw-sMxttD05vJ1YsgCLcB/s1600/prey_dec2_0000_Layer_4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DsGVl7viSRs/WRzkZqkA8TI/AAAAAAAADkI/CQllmaRYNvsc1S-8Dw-sMxttD05vJ1YsgCLcB/s400/prey_dec2_0000_Layer_4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><b><br /></b>This ending is presented to you fairly early on in the game, and can actually be completed as soon as you get access to the arboretum and crew quarters. If you follow this ending, a rogue operator named December claims that January, the operator with your voice who has been your guide for the game, is lying to you. December offers you an alternate to going through with January's plan to destroy Talos I - just high-tail it out of there in Alex Yu's secret escape pod.<br /><br />If you go through with this ending, however, all that happens is your screen turns black, and you hear Alex lamenting you for "giving up". He then tells someone that "This isn't the one, start over," and you are prompted to reload an earlier save.<br /><br /><b>The Explanation: </b>This is a false ending. In order to understand this ending you have to finish one of the other main endings that reveals that you are in fact a Typhon experiencing Morgan Yu's memories. In this ending you opted to escape rather than finish the simulation, which is why Alex simply "restarts" the simulation by having you load an earlier save.<br /><br /><h3>The Alex Yu Ending: Destroy All Typhon</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4lbJM39eadE/WRzlrek9fMI/AAAAAAAADkU/wh-36yOjYm8UVMWZ0UJYlDPSN2fhhXNKwCLcB/s1600/prey7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4lbJM39eadE/WRzlrek9fMI/AAAAAAAADkU/wh-36yOjYm8UVMWZ0UJYlDPSN2fhhXNKwCLcB/s400/prey7.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Towards the end of the game Alex Yu reveals an alternative plan to January's "destroy Talos I and everyone on it" solution. By scanning the Typhon coral, you're able to develop a kind of omega Nullwave transmitter that will kill <b>all </b>of the Typhon while keeping the station intact. The only "person" you will have to kill is January, who refuses to let you deploy the Nullwave transmitter unless you destroy him. This is usually considered the good ending, because by following this ending you automatically save everyone left on the ship, destroy the Typhon, and preserve all of the scientific advancements of Talos I.&nbsp;</div><div><br /></div><div>Completing this ending will lead you into one of the two "true" ending scenarios after the credits role.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Explanation: </b>Read on to the "true" endings to understand what this ending means.</div><div><br /></div><h3>The January Ending: Destroy Talos I</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p0i80nHKIOI/WRzu2W9cVjI/AAAAAAAADkk/sebBqPCN6t87nHcB1ELp7q9yFtQ20RphQCLcB/s1600/prey-trolley-january.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p0i80nHKIOI/WRzu2W9cVjI/AAAAAAAADkk/sebBqPCN6t87nHcB1ELp7q9yFtQ20RphQCLcB/s400/prey-trolley-january.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>January's plan throughout the whole game, which he insist is your plan, is to simply get a hold of Morgan and Alex's arming keys and force Talos I's nuclear reactor to detonate, destroying the entire station and everything on it. If you choose to follow this ending, there are actually quite a few variants you can follow.&nbsp;</div><div><br /></div><div>No matter what happens, Alex dies, as he opts to go down with the ship. You can also opt to go down with the ship, and bring all of the other Talos I survivors with you. Or, you can save and reprogram Dahl so that he can pilot the shuttle containing you and the other survivors to safety. Or, you can simply get the heck out of dodge and take Alex's escape pod, leaving the rest of the survivors to perish in the explosion. Note that choosing to escape means you'll also have to destroy January, as he wants everyone to go down with the ship.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>Completing this ending will lead you into one of the two "true" ending scenarios after the credits role.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Explanation:&nbsp;</b>Read on to the "true" endings to understand what this ending means.</div></div><div><br /></div><h3>True Ending 1: Failure</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y_KP7UULUxE/WRzvXcBkk8I/AAAAAAAADks/JfKYURlXnoQaJQhIMaaZ7E3nisprHAWJACLcB/s1600/aliens_2D00_610.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-y_KP7UULUxE/WRzvXcBkk8I/AAAAAAAADks/JfKYURlXnoQaJQhIMaaZ7E3nisprHAWJACLcB/s400/aliens_2D00_610.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div>After the credits role is when the weird shit starts to happen. If you did the Alex Yu or January endings (any variant), you'll be presented with a post credits scene in which Alex and four operators representing the major human characters on Talos I are gathered around you. You are strapped to a chair, and going by your wavy black tentacle arms, are a Typhon Phantom. Alex and the operators then run down a summary of all the big decisions you made throughout the game.</div><div><br /></div><div>In this ending, Alex laments that the experiment was a failure, and you refused to show enough compassion. This is usually achieved by killing, or causing to be killed, the other human survivors on Talos I. You are then terminated, and the game ends.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Explanation: </b>Surprise! You're not actually Morgan Yu. You are a Typhon, and the entirety of the game has simply been a simulation of the real Morgan Yu's memories of the Typhon incident. The goal of the experiment was to try and instil human empathy and emotion into a Typhon, in order for both of the races to understand each other better, and you failed by being a psychopath. Sorry!</div><div><br /></div><h3>True Ending 2: Success</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_E3i21UUDlY/WRzvBfN4tEI/AAAAAAAADko/q1QE0tNOmeM25gVl4po74b5GlaQL8fo4wCEw/s1600/33718258633_9fa6fe765f_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_E3i21UUDlY/WRzvBfN4tEI/AAAAAAAADko/q1QE0tNOmeM25gVl4po74b5GlaQL8fo4wCEw/s400/33718258633_9fa6fe765f_z.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>This is what I believe to be the canon, "best" ending of the game. This ending is the same as True Ending 1, but instead of being terminated by Alex, he and the operators offer you praise. To get this ending, you generally have to be the good guy throughout the whole game, by saving and helping the survivors on board Talos I.</div><div><br /></div><div>Alex then shows you the real world. It's San Francisco, completely covered in Typhon coral. If you were paying attention, the game alluded to this with the visions it showed you when installing certain neuromods, or scanning certain Typhon. In the real world, the Typhon made it back to Earth, and are hard at work taking it over.&nbsp;</div><div><br /></div><div>He then gives you a choice. He believes that the experiment was a success, and he has succeeded in putting some humanity into you, a Typhon. If you think he's right, you can take his hand and offer to help. When you do this, you see your hand morph into a human one, showing the first step towards friendly Typhon/human relations. Or you can just choose to kill everyone. You monster.</div><div><br /></div><h3><b>The Final Explanation:&nbsp;</b></h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6zR6_0tD1K8/WRzvpyABgSI/AAAAAAAADkw/vAlpMqmS6ac4siIGsB0JHKyKf2jGW_ZcACLcB/s1600/maxresdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6zR6_0tD1K8/WRzvpyABgSI/AAAAAAAADkw/vAlpMqmS6ac4siIGsB0JHKyKf2jGW_ZcACLcB/s400/maxresdefault.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><b><br /></b></div>Okay, so now we are finally at the end of all of the endings, and we can analyse what the hell just happened. The first thing we need to know is that the real Morgan Yu is dead, as are all of the other "survivors" from Talos I. What we can assume actually happened is that the real Morgan tried to stop the Typhon, either via Alex's plan or January's plan, and failed. Either he was killed by the Typhon, or killed by Dahl, or his plan didn't work, or something else happened. Alex, meanwhile, was able to escape - most likely on his personal escape pod - when the shit really hit the fan. The Typhon also make it back to earth somehow.<br /><br />Alex then at some point, presumably on earth but possibly on another space station given he's still wearing his Transtar uniform, captures a Typhon phantom (perhaps even the Typhon phantom that rose from Morgan's corpse) and submits it to his experiment, alongside a group of operators instilled with the voices and memories of Talos I's former crew.<br /><br />Alex believes the only way to save the world is for Typhon and human to coexist, and you are a result of that belief. He says that they spent so long putting "them" into "us", they never thought to put "us" into "them". Showing compassion, getting the True Ending 2, and choosing to side with the humans, is the "good ending," as it alludes to a future where things are patched up and everything goes back to normal (ish).<br /><br />However, not every video game takes the "good" ending to be the "canon" one, as games like&nbsp;<i>X-COM 2 </i>memorably<i>&nbsp;</i>showed us.<br /><br />Despite all of this, some questions still remain unanswered. <br /><br />Who was December? As Alex says the whole thing is based on Morgan's actual memories of the situation, we can assume that December was real. So was December telling Morgan the truth, or was January?<br /><br />What did the real Morgan try to do? Did he try to follow January's plan or Alex's? Or did he follow December's plan and book it out of there? Perhaps he's even still alive, or maybe he is the reason the Typhon made it back to earth?<br /><br />How <b>did </b>the Typhon get back to earth? They were isolated on Talos I, and it looks like Alex was the only one who made it off. So either they hitched a ride with Alex, or brought the whole station with them. I find it hard to believe that earth wouldn't just nuke Talos I from orbit if it started flying towards it.<br /><br />These questions may not be answered until <i>Prey 2, </i>but it's certainly fun to speculate!Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-23458894173595441362017-05-03T15:36:00.003+09:002017-05-03T15:36:38.679+09:00Overwatch: an In-Depth Guide to ReinhardtHey guys! I've got some good news, and some bad news. The bad news is that due to a cut in budget, <i>The Escapist </i>has cancelled my current contract. I won't be writing for them for the foreseeable future (unless, of course, the same thing that happened last year happens, and they realize I make up the vast majority of their news views and hire me back next month...) That means for the moment, I'm back on the freelance market! The good news is that it's given me some time to pursue other projects.<br /><br />The first of which is a collaboration with my good friend Kyle Best to produce a series of Overwatch guides. Here is the first in the series: Reinhardt. I hope you enjoy it!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/yXeb8UwtiVE/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yXeb8UwtiVE?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next up will be Zennyatta. We hope to cover all of the game's 24 playable heroes.</div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-42586386868626009512016-04-26T15:16:00.000+09:002016-04-26T15:20:04.733+09:00C'thun and You: What Whispers of The Old Gods Means For Hearthstone<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The ancient ones are upon us. C’thun, Yogg-Saron and the rest of their Old God buddies have infested </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hearthstone, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and with the release of their expansion: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whispers of The Old Gods, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">are bringing some big changes to the game. It’s easily the most significant update to the game since launch, and both new and old players alike will have to familiarize themselves to what’s new. Let’s have a look at what the arrival of the Old Gods mean for the game.</span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img src="http://cdn.blizzardwatch.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/whispers-of-the-old-gods-hearthstone-expansion-header.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-c697269e-5120-7d21-32f4-886aaf95a92c" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">First and most significantly, when </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whispers of The Old Gods</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> launches on April 26, it will kick off the “Year of The Kraken”, splitting </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hearthstone </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">into two distinct formats of play: Wild and Standard. Wild will essentially be “classic” </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hearthstone, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">allowing players to make decks from all cards that have ever been released for the game. Standard, on the other hand, will restrict players to making decks only out of cards that have been released in the last year, as well as the base and classic sets. In the case of this year - The Year of The Kraken - only cards from </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blackrock Mountain, The Grand Tournament, League of Explorers </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whispers of The Old Gods</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> will be legal.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Both formats will have access to the ranked, casual and practice game modes, while The Arena will only be available in the Wild format. Additionally, “retired” cards - in this case cards from Naxxramas and Goblins vs. Gnomes, will no longer become purchasable with money. The only way to obtain them will be to craft them with arcane dust.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Yes Steven, we understand, new formats, now hurry up and get to the new bloody cards!” I hear you screech. Hold on a minute! Before we look at the new cards, we have to check out the nerfs. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whispers of The Old Gods </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">introduces more nerfs to old cards than the </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">total number of nerfs </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the game has received since launch. Wowza! A whopping </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">twelve </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">cards from the classic and basic sets have been nerfed, including old staples like Ironbeak Owl, Big Game Hunter and Mountain Giang, as well as some class specific cards like Force of Nature and Hunter's mark. A lot of these nerfs were to cards that limited future design space, and indeed, quite a few of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whispers of The Old Gods </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">coolest cards couldn’t exist with these cards in their current state! </span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img src="https://bnetcmsus-a.akamaihd.net/cms/gallery/HILIPQX7HAF11461136028437.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">R.I.P Combo Druid</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Check out the </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://us.battle.net/hearthstone/en/blog/20097355/keeping-hearthstone-fresh-4-20-2016">official website</a> for more info on the nerfs. As a note, when the nerfs go live, you’ll be able to disenchant all of the affected cards for their </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">full dust value. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I highly recommend doing this if you aren’t going to immediately use the cards, as you’ll always be able to craft them back if you need them!</span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Right, moving on. Easily, the most interesting cards of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">WotoG </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">are the Old Gods themselves. Each has a very unique effect, are supplemented by supporting minions, and have a very specific deck archetype in mind. <a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/31110-cthun">C’thun</a> for example, is built around his “followers”, who will buff up his stats whether he is in your hand, your deck, or even in play. A lot of these minions are “understatted”, meaning that C’thun decks will be very slow decks that sacrifice their early game in exchange for unleashing a devastating C’thun finisher. He is sure to be a favourite for control priests and warriors! </span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33168-yogg-saron-hopes-end">Yogg-Sarron</a> casts a random spell (at a random target) for every spell you have cast that game. Mages and Rogues, who build decks based on having lots of cheap, frequent spells, will be able to drop this Old God as another finisher, although he is a lot less reliable than his buddy C’thun…</span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z1J_yVThs30/Vx8Ego4UxAI/AAAAAAAADE8/8TG8CSoXuSY0oaPzAvOmuQoaskq04O1RQCLcB/s1600/old%2Bgods.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Z1J_yVThs30/Vx8Ego4UxAI/AAAAAAAADE8/8TG8CSoXuSY0oaPzAvOmuQoaskq04O1RQCLcB/s400/old%2Bgods.png" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Each of the four old gods has a very unique effect.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b> </span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33156-yshaarj-rage-unbound">Y’shaarj</a>is much more of a general use type Old God, and is the kind of card that can be put into control heavy decks without having to worry about being supplemented too much. He brings out a minion every turn he is in play, and has a devastating attack, making him a big-bodied threat in the same vein as Ysera.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Finally, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33134-nzoth-the-corruptor">N’zoth</a>, rather than creating something completely new, simply supplements the “deathrattle” playstyle. Even with only a handful of powerful deathrattle minions, like Sylvanas and Tirion Fordring, he has considerable value.</span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">The general theme of this expansion is slow. While prior expansions have </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">favored</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;"> fast, “rush” or “aggro” style decks, the Old Gods are clearly about biding your time to build up a massive, killer finisher. Many of the neutral and class legendaries, like </span></span><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33177-deathwing-dragonlord" style="color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: none; white-space: pre-wrap;">Deathwing, Dragonlord</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/35207-malkorok">Malkorok</a> and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33170-chogall">Cho’gall</a>also support control-heavy playstyles. Hunter in particular, which has always been a very aggro-oriented class, has been given quite a few tools to make a sort of control deathrattle N’zoth hunter viable, like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33181-forlorn-stalker">Forlorn Stalker</a> and <a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33146-infest">Infest</a>.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In terms of the overall “winner” of the expansion, I’m gonna have to go with Shaman, Only two cards with “overload” were introduced, and they are actually quite sensibly statted. They were given an overload unlock alternative to Lava Shock with </span><span style="background-color: transparent; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/35231-eternal-sentinel">Eternal </a></span></span><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/35231-eternal-sentinel">Sentinel</a> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 1.38; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.38; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33131-hallazeal-the-ascended">Hallazeal The Ascended</a> will make lightning storming a full board also give you a considerable heal.</span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/69/35231.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Finally an "underload" alternative to Lava Shock!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Warrior also got some super interesting cards like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33166-blood-warriors">Blood Warriors</a> and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/35209-blood-to-ichor">Blood to Ichor</a>, while the Paladin’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33158-vilefin-inquisitor">Vilefin Inquisitor</a> makes an all-murloc deck somewhat viable. Druid’s legendary, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/35208-fandral-staghelm">Fandral Staghelm</a> makes the nerfs to Ancient of Lore and Keeper of The Grove make sense, and is an incredibly powerful card. Even Mage got some crazy good cards like </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33178-faceless-summoner">Faceless Summoner</a>, and Warlock got the hilarious “Warlock is too hard, let me play another class”-card: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33136-renounce-darkness">Renounce Darkness</a>. </span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The two classes that got the shaft were Rogue and Priest. Both of these classes lost </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">a lot </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">of their most powerful tools with the expansion, either in the change to standard format (Velen’s Chosen and Lightbomb for Priest) or the base and classic card nerfs (Blade Flurry for Rogue), and neither were given what they need to compensate. I predict that these two will be the weakest classes in the upcoming new meta, while Mage, Shaman, and Warrior should take the top spots.</span></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></span><br /><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for the expansion’s neutral cards, there are way too many to list here, but they include a lot of interesting ideas, such as </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/33164-blood-of-the-ancient-one">Blood of The Ancient One</a> - a kind of win condition in of itself, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/35190-shifter-zerus">Shifter Zerus</a> - Unstable Portal: the minion, and </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/cards/31121-eater-of-secrets">Eater of Secrets</a>- a hard counter to those pesky secret Paladins!</span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/214/35190.png" height="400" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="289" /></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Will either win you the game or be completely useless...</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The folks over at </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.hearthpwn.com/guides/1205-whispers-of-the-old-gods">Hearthpwn</a> have put together a full list of all the new cards if you want the full rundown. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Whispers of The Old Gods </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is probably the most interesting thing to ever happen to </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Hearthstone, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and will hopefully be the jolt the game needs to kickstart its rather stale competitive meta. I’m excited, and you should be too!</span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'll leave you with some of my favorite cards from the upcoming set, in no particular order:</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/522/33160.png" height="200" width="144" /><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/322/33178.png" height="200" width="144" /><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/353/33147.png" height="200" width="144" /></span></div></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/283/35214.png" height="200" width="144" /><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/54/33158.png" height="200" width="144" /><img src="http://media-hearth.cursecdn.com/avatars/289/202/33136.png" height="200" width="144" /></span></div></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14.6667px; line-height: 20.24px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Thanks for reading guys! I would really appreciate if you could, share, Tweet, reddit or just get this article out there to as many folks as possible; I want people to know that even though I don't work at <i>The Escapist </i>anymore, I'm still honing my craft, and willing to put out freelance articles to wherever is needed.</span></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-50238728120295927692016-04-20T13:52:00.003+09:002016-04-20T13:52:44.769+09:00Back on The MarketHey guys. Bit of sad news if you haven't already heard. <i>The Escapist </i>has closed up its Connecticut office, and let go the vast majority of its staff. This, unfortunately, included me. I'm incredibly grateful to Susan Ardent, the EiC at the time of my appointment three years ago who took a chance on a cocky, young, smart-mouthed kid. Additionally, I'm thankful to Greg Tito and Joshua Vanderwall, Susan's successors, for fostering my writing and editing ability.<br /><br />I am a thousand percent better of a writer thanks to this experience. You can write, and write, and write, but you will never get any better unless you have someone better than you look over your work. More than anything else, this is what I took from <i>The Escapist, </i>and it is ultimately this experience that will lead to me finding the job I want to do long term.<br /><br />Here's the last article I wrote for them. So long, <i>Escapist, </i>it sure was fun while it lasted!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/video-games/16954-Overwatch-Balance-Changes#&amp;gid=gallery_6104&amp;pid=1">The Balances Overwatch Needs Before Launch</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/video-games/16954-Overwatch-Balance-Changes#&amp;gid=gallery_6104&amp;pid=1"><img alt="image" height="208" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/1303/1303932.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />So, I'm back on the market! Ideally, I would like to find something similar to what I did at <i>The Escapist: </i>video game-related freelance work that I can carry out from the comfort of my own home. That said, beggars can't be choosers, and while I do have a 1-year "safety net" of my teaching job, come April 2017 I will be back in Australia with no job, and my new wife. I will of course entertain all offers from all types of jobs around the world, as eventually I'll need to find myself a proper full-time gig to support myself.<br /><br />If you know of anything, <b>anything </b>writing related, in either the US, Japan or Australia, please feel free to drop me a line.<br /><br />In the interim, I'm going to take a short break from writing. Since being made editorial staff at the beginning of the year, I've been basically running myself ragged juggling the two jobs. It's good to actually have free time - to lesson plan at school, to spend time with Laura in the evenings, and of course play video games! I'm looking forward to my first holiday that I don't have to lug along my laptop just in case I have to write up an article...<br /><br />Eventually though, I will start up writing again, if nothing else than to keep my skills keen, and my knowledge up-to-date. I will probably do something similar to what I used to do on this blog: a weekly news round-up with occasional features and reviews. After-all, it was in no small thanks to this blog that I ended up getting <i>The Escapist </i>position!<br /><br />As always, thank you for all of your support, and stay tuned.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img height="320" src="https://scontent-nrt1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/v/t1.0-9/12687977_10153583939723611_8203857100082957419_n.jpg?oh=1724e5e540331228ba7d5d41e94d0d22&amp;oe=57A996B4" width="320" /></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-85913577785702558352016-01-26T13:11:00.002+09:002016-01-26T13:11:36.985+09:00New Year, New PositionHey there, faithful Steve's Game Blog readers (hi Jerry!)<br /><br />I've got some good news! 2016 marks not just a new year, but a brand new position for me. I am no longer a simple news monkey for The Escapist, but have been made a part of the editorial staff! Hooray! What this means is that I am now one half of the reviews production team, and will be editing an average of 7 reviews a month. Here's the first of many:<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-md0x37cBRFE/VqbpLYp1LxI/AAAAAAAADAA/0rgin3lu9nw/s400/1259072.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/video-games/editorials/reviews/15297-The-Witness-Review-PS4-Jonathan-Blow-Adventure?utm_source=latest&amp;utm_medium=index_carousel&amp;utm_campaign=all#&amp;gid=gallery_5498&amp;pid=1">The Witness Review</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Additionally, I will also be working on the site's "Gallery of The Day" feature, as well as having a much bigger presence with additional feature articles. I'm also getting my very own weekly column: The Escapists Review. The Escapists Review is a kind of community reviews project, where I will collect and edit reviews submitted by Escapist users, and publish them on the site. It's still not 100% ready yet, but should be up and running by the end of next month, so stay tuned!<br /><br />I will also maintain my regular news duties, as one of the site's most senior reporters.<br /><br />As for what this means for my duties as an ALT... well, stay tuned for info on that...<br /><br />Be sure to click <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/articles/Steven%20Bogos">here</a>&nbsp;to see all of the articles I'll be writing for The Escapist, and <a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos">here</a> to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates. I don't really update this blog that often so those two links are the best way to keep up-to-date with all my work.<br />.Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-33521925962647955812015-01-23T08:49:00.001+09:002015-01-23T20:59:14.137+09:00Minamiaizu - a Hidden Snowsports ParadiseEvery year, Kanto’s skiers and snowboarders make the pilgrimage to one of Tochigi’s two “premier” ski resorts - Hunter Mountain and Mt. Jeans - by the tens of thousands. With how incredibly popular these resorts are, you’d imagine they were the bee’s knees of snowsports in Japan. However, in actuality, they are overpriced, overcrowded, ice-skating rinks, that more often than not have to rely on man-made snow just to get a decent cover. So why do so many people flock to these resorts? Well, they are literally the closest places to ski for those in the northern Kanto area, and two of the easiest to get to by car from Tokyo. So, to all you people making the long trek from Tokyo to Tochigi, I have a message for you: <b>Stop!</b> You’ve come all that way, why not add just an extra hour to your journey, and go to one of Minamiaizu’s hidden snowsports paradises?<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_XceIIUycAA/VMGAUTV8_kI/AAAAAAAACSg/DhVQCDamKbc/s1600/463533_10151134600479657_1493848042_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_XceIIUycAA/VMGAUTV8_kI/AAAAAAAACSg/DhVQCDamKbc/s1600/463533_10151134600479657_1493848042_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Glorious snow awaits you in Minamiaizu.</td></tr></tbody></table>Located just an hour and a half drive from Nasushiobara station, the two “fringe” resorts of Fukushima’s Minamiaizu ski area - Takatsue and Daikura - offer everything that Hunter Mountain and Mt. Jeans don’t. Fresh powder. Cheap tickets. Glorious, varied terrain. Small crowds. While they are a little smaller than Tochigi’s resorts, and don’t have quite all the snazz of the big resorts (like gondolas or NFC lift tickets), these quaint hidden gems are well worth the longer trip.<br /><div><br />Takatsue has just eight lifts, but <a href="http://www.takatsue.jp/skiing/index.html">over a dozen different runs</a> of varying difficulty, including some amazing tree runs under the lifts. It also has a full terrain park, complete with a massive, full-sized half-pipe. The snow is frequent and fluffy, and it’s a rare day that I don’t get to make some fresh tracks <b>somewhere </b>on the mountain. Everything except the uppermost lift is well shielded from the wind, so even in the worst of weather you’ll still have a great time. Best of all, if you don’t feel like braving the icy and snowy roads (or don’t have a car equipped to handle it), Takatsue actually offers <a href="http://www.takatsue.jp/access/nasushiobara.html">a free “park and ride” shuttle bus service,</a> from Nasushiobara’s “Nasu Garden Outlet”.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OxaRLPMRg70/VMGAUR3U88I/AAAAAAAACSs/NN_r2NQSIQc/s1600/461041_10151134601134657_1406420599_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OxaRLPMRg70/VMGAUR3U88I/AAAAAAAACSs/NN_r2NQSIQc/s1600/461041_10151134601134657_1406420599_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There's always some fresh powder on Takatsue.</td></tr></tbody></table>If you’re just going for the one day, pick up the <a href="http://www.takatsue.jp/event/service.html">4,500 yen lunch coupon ticket</a>, which comes with a 1,000 yen lunch voucher. However, if you think you’ll be coming back at least two more times, be sure to sign up for Takatsue’s “Snow Powder Club”, which offers you a discount on lift tickets for each consecutive visit - bringing the cost of a ticket down to just 2,500 yen after your third visit. A full ski set/snowboard set hire will set you back 3,000 yen and 4,000 yen respectively, but you can get a 500 yen discount with the Snow Powder Club card.<br /><br />Daikura, on the other hand, is even smaller than Takatsue, with <a href="http://daikura.net/gelande/">just five lifts and 11 runs</a>. However, it is one of the cheapest ski resorts in the area, at just 3,900 yen for the same kind of discount lunch ticket that Takatsue offers. It’s also ever-so-slightly closer: about an hour and 20 minutes from Nasushiobara station. Advanced skiers and snowboarders won’t find too much to do here, with only three, relatively short black runs, and no real tree runs to speak of, but beginners and intermediates should have a blast experiencing the same kind of famous Japanese powder snow that all its big resorts are known for around the world. Ski and snowboard hire will set you back 3,000/3,800 yen respectively for a set.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W8U6LHFu8yU/VMGAWHWaqhI/AAAAAAAACSk/uRLkoqZo2h4/s1600/737534_10151738086349657_564015328_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W8U6LHFu8yU/VMGAWHWaqhI/AAAAAAAACSk/uRLkoqZo2h4/s1600/737534_10151738086349657_564015328_o.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The views from Daikura's summit are just astonishing.</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Both of these resorts are perfect for a day trip, but if you’d like to stay longer, both <a href="http://daikura.net/lodging/">Daikura</a> and <a href="http://www.aizu-kougen.jp/">Takatsue</a> offer on-site lodgings. Alternatively, you could also find a place to stay in the nearby onsen resort town of Shiobara, or around the Nasushiobara station area.<br /><br />So whether you’re a powderhound who’s sick of having to share the slopes of Hakuba and Niseko with a million other foreigners, or a local in the Kanto area who is just looking to get in a bit of skiing, next time you think skiing or snowboarding, think Fukushima, and its unspoiled snowsports paradises.<br /><br />-Steven Bogos<br /><div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.15; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FobGE33b_wM/VMGAUdzcvJI/AAAAAAAACSY/TwoUPrCk7C8/s1600/532771_10151134602854657_1068436784_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FobGE33b_wM/VMGAUdzcvJI/AAAAAAAACSY/TwoUPrCk7C8/s1600/532771_10151134602854657_1068436784_n.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Minamiaizu... let's go!</span></td></tr></tbody></table></span><br /><br /></div></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-18534966820770227232014-10-22T08:02:00.000+09:002014-10-22T09:54:27.957+09:00The "Gamer Gate" PostHey guys. There has been a lot of talk about <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamergate_controversy">"Gamer Gate"</a>&nbsp;in the gaming media world as of late. I would like to say a few words on the matter. You may be wondering why its taken me so long to post a statement, and why it's appearing here, instead of on The Escapist. Well, after a whole lot of back-and-forth with Defy Media (The Escapist's parent company), we have been told that we must post a collective "group" statement, rather than personal statements. I respect Defy as a company, and I don't even feel <b>that </b>strongly about Gamer Gate, but forcing us to act as a "collective" rather than an individual really bugged me. Maybe it's because of all my time living in Japan's "collective-focused" society.<br /><br />That said, here is what I have to say about Gamer Gate:<br /><br />When I started my career as a journalist, I chose to go into gaming journalism for two reasons. The first, is because I am passionate about (read: obsessed with) video games. The second is because I didn't want to end up writing gossip tabloid stories for some bottom-of-the-barrel mainstream media publication, digging into people's private lives and attacking their character and reputation. But, in the weeks surrounding the "Gamer Gate" controversy, I was ashamed to see so many outlets in the gaming media and community descend into the exact kind of "he-said, she-said" bullshit that I tried to avoid by entering this industry.<br /><br />I just want to write about video games. I want to write about what people say about video games, and occasionally, I want to write about cool science, tech, and geek culture tidbits. I don't care what these people do in their private lives. I don't care if so and so slept with so and so, and I certainly don't want to write about it. The vitriol from both sides of Gamer Gate made me sick and ashamed, and I vowed to have as little to do with it as possible. This statement will be the first, and last, time I address my views on the controversy.<br /><br />While sexism, equality, and journalistic ethics in the gaming industry are definitely discussions worth having, Gamer Gate was certainly not the way to go about having them. We, as gamers, should be better than this. I thought we were above this kind of tabloid-newspaper garbage.<br /><br />-Steven Bogos<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.acting-man.com/blog/media/2014/07/gate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.acting-man.com/blog/media/2014/07/gate.jpg" height="188" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />PS: Just to end on something a little more lighthearted, here is my <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/comicsandcosplay/cosplaygalleries/12477-League-of-Legends-World-Championship-Cosplay-Gallery?utm_source=latest&amp;utm_medium=index_carousel&amp;utm_campaign=all">League of Legends World Championships Cosplay Gallery!</a>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-47805333050625521092014-04-26T11:55:00.004+09:002014-04-26T11:55:58.598+09:00VIDEO: Here's a couple of Diablo III Witch Doctor videosHey guys,<br /><br />Been getting pretty big into Diablo III now that Reaper of Souls is out, so here's a couple of quick videos I put together about legendary effects and the Witch Doctor:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/aBTTvh5mfwk?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowFullScreen='true' webkitallowfullscreen='true' mozallowfullscreen='true' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/sP12hj11aEk?feature=player_embedded' FRAMEBORDER='0' /></div><br />Sorry I haven't been updating as much! Be sure to check out all my&nbsp;<a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles">Escapist news posts!</a>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-16976351733238015232014-02-16T16:07:00.007+09:002014-02-16T16:07:52.243+09:00REVIEW: The Last of Us (PS3)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JgfyMRcGo78/UvzE1NAX5QI/AAAAAAAABPw/ipyWH9eLUaw/s1600/copy-the-last-of-us-banner.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JgfyMRcGo78/UvzE1NAX5QI/AAAAAAAABPw/ipyWH9eLUaw/s1600/copy-the-last-of-us-banner.jpg" height="150" width="400" /></a></div><br /><i>The Last of Us </i>has one of the best written plots I ever have experienced in a video game. Period. It is a fantastic human story that is fascinating from start to end, and that fact alone makes it one of the best games of 2013. So, if you came to this review with the question "is <i>The Last of Us</i> worth it?”, then you have your answer - yes, it is most definitely "worth it". You can stop reading right now, and go and buy the game with my guarantee that it will be an incredibly satisfying gaming experience. However, if you'd like a bit more insight into why I believe it's not <b>quite </b>as deserving of all of the gushing love fans have slathered on it, then please, read on. <br /><br />Essentially, <i>The Last of Us</i> is a perfect example of how a well-written plot can't (completely) carry a mediocre game, and while it does try its best, the actual, you know, game, behind&nbsp;<i>The Last of Us</i> is what drags the rest of it down. And honestly (well, at least to me personally), that's kind of the most important part of a video game.<br /><br />But let's start with what <i>The Last of Us</i> did well, because overall, the game generally deserves to be applauded. If there is one award that <i>The Last of Us</i> truly deserves, it is the Writer's Guild of America's "best writing in a video game". I laughed. I cried. I screamed in fear. <i>The Last of Us</i> may be a "zombie game", but like <i>The Walking Dead</i> before it, the real story is the human drama - how low, how high, and how downright horrible human beings become when they have their backs pushed up against the wall. Throughout the game, I was delighted to see Joel and Ellie's blossoming relationship, whether it be from the random little quips Ellie will spout while progressing through a level, or her and Joel’s heart-wrenching cutscene performances. All of the supporting cast you’ll meet along the way also does a great job of helping bring Joel and Ellie's story of survival in this beautiful, yet broken world, to a satisfying conclusion.<br /><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O-5TBw0BpAY/UvzEzWdN5VI/AAAAAAAABPs/PNDHtxH2WHU/s1600/7339374760_77cd1bae32_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-O-5TBw0BpAY/UvzEzWdN5VI/AAAAAAAABPs/PNDHtxH2WHU/s1600/7339374760_77cd1bae32_o.png" height="225" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>And boy, is this world beautiful. I was skeptical, having not played a game on last generation consoles in quite some time, that the graphics would be unbearable, but Naughty Dog has done an amazing job of squeezing those last scraps of performance out of the aging PlayStation 3 hardware. The world of <i>The Last of Us</i>, while not really being anything we haven't seen before in games like <i>Half-Life 2, Resident Evil,</i> or even <i>Fallout</i>, is a gorgeous place to explore. I am a sucker for urban decay, and having Joel and Ellie adventure their way through collapsed skyscrapers, abandoned subways, and cities being slowly reclaimed by nature, made me giddy. It's a lot of the little attention-to-detail stuff that Naughty Dog added, such as Ellie reacting graffiti marking the aftermath of some conflict, or the collectible notes left behind by survivors, that really breathe life into the world.<br /><br />Unfortunately, the beautiful world turns a little bit ugly when we look at the game’s actual gameplay. <i>The Last of Us</i>' gameplay is split into three main segments: exploration, zombie combat, and human combat. The exploration sections were acceptable, as the only real complaint I had is that the solution to almost every "puzzle" is just finding a ladder or plank and boosting Ellie up to a higher location to use it.<br /><br />The survival horror-style zombie combat is probably the best-designed of the three. Some levels, such as one in an abandoned high school, were truly, nail-bitingly terrifying. The only problem is, as the game progresses into the later stages, the enemies don't seem to get any harder, and once you can figure out that stealth + melee is king, and that it is impossible for your allies to accidentally trigger a zombie, the challenge kind of diminishes.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-EnsYK1LNJNA%2FUvzEzGCzAoI%2FAAAAAAAABPc%2FuUQ_9sB3lsw%2Fs1600%2F6801025846_78d439a111_o.jpg&amp;container=blogger&amp;gadget=a&amp;rewriteMime=image%2F*" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F1.bp.blogspot.com%2F-EnsYK1LNJNA%2FUvzEzGCzAoI%2FAAAAAAAABPc%2FuUQ_9sB3lsw%2Fs1600%2F6801025846_78d439a111_o.jpg&amp;container=blogger&amp;gadget=a&amp;rewriteMime=image%2F*" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>But even with the reduced challenge, the survival horror segments are still pretty satisfying. The human combat segments, on the other hand, go downhill real fast. At first, the absolutely shocking gunplay controls (who the hell thinks its a good idea to bind reload and fire to the same godamn button?) really frustrated me, but after a while I learned that, just like in the zombie segments, it's much more effective to hide and punch than shoot and flank. It doesn't help that the human AI is shockingly inconsistent. There will be times when I can strangle a dude while his buddy literally two feet away doesn't notice, and times when I barely pop my head out of cover and someone half a mile away sees me.<br /><br />The human enemies are also generally, really, really dumb. It's so easy to find a cramped space where guns aren't useful, lure one guy there, kill him loudly, and then just punch all his buddies to death when they inevitably come, one by one, to investigate. And when all else fails, you can just pick up a baseball bat and sprint full tilt at rifle-armed-thugs. All they'll do is look at you, and maybe think about shooting you, right up until you knock their blocks off.<br /><br />Because I barely used my guns, and almost never used the "special" weapons (such as bombs and molotovs) I always had a massive surplus of weaponry, so whenever a "boss" fight came up, I would destroy him with ease.<br /><br />Furthermore, the game practically showers you with the materials for medkits. After a while, you learn exactly where to look to find their components, so I always had at least two in reserve. There was one time when I had actually ran out of medkits, and was kind of in a bad spot, when all of a sudden Ellie turns around and says "here Joel, I found this for you" and hands me one. Really?</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T-R_r5EvC2I/UvzE0iD8tLI/AAAAAAAABP0/ByQ6KBr2Mr8/s1600/8451038631_c1df8cb480_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-T-R_r5EvC2I/UvzE0iD8tLI/AAAAAAAABP0/ByQ6KBr2Mr8/s1600/8451038631_c1df8cb480_o.png" height="225" width="400" /></a></div><div><br />Normally I wouldn't be so harsh on a game's difficulty, but I was playing the game on "hard" - the hardest difficulty available when you start the game. Yes, there is an additional difficulty level ("survivor"), but it is only unlocked <b>after</b>&nbsp;you have finished the main game once -&nbsp;a practice which I absolutely cannot stand. So yeah, If you are somewhat competent at video games, you will breeze through <i>The Last of Us</i> without breaking a sweat.<br /><br />The best part of this game, by far, is its story, and I found myself “forcing” my way through it’s gameplay segments just to get to the next cutscene, or see the next area. While you may see this as an almighty praise for its writing, it’s also quite a harsh criticism of it’s gameplay. I shouldn't <b>want to avoid</b> the gameplay segments of a<b> video game</b>.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M29F809TlJc/UvzE0DLMVUI/AAAAAAAABP4/nm8ZVeOd-0c/s1600/8261727449_018c5edbd4_o.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M29F809TlJc/UvzE0DLMVUI/AAAAAAAABP4/nm8ZVeOd-0c/s1600/8261727449_018c5edbd4_o.png" height="225" width="400" /></a></div><div><br />So while <i>The Last of Us</i> is an amazingly well-written written human story, Naughty Dog forgot to &nbsp;pair it with an equally well-made game. Despite this, it is still a fantastic experience, and if you just want to sit back and enjoy the ride, by breezing through it on easy mode to enjoy the story, you will be satisfied. But if you came here expecting a challenge, you've come to the wrong place.<br /><br /><b>Verdict: Buy</b></div></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-7526742601550702852013-12-21T00:08:00.002+09:002013-12-21T00:08:41.229+09:00REVIEW: Super Mario 3D World (Wii U)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5rvb-ad2-Ps/UrL3iJ0BQ3I/AAAAAAAABN0/il1RnEK94Lk/s1600/super-mario-3d-world-logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5rvb-ad2-Ps/UrL3iJ0BQ3I/AAAAAAAABN0/il1RnEK94Lk/s400/super-mario-3d-world-logo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>The terms "killer app" and "system seller" get thrown around quite loosely these days, however, It's actually quite rare for a single game to single handedly move a substantial number of systems the way <i>Halo </i>did on the Xbox, or <i>Smash Bros. </i>did on the Wii (there are of course exceptions, such as <i>Pokemon </i>on the 3DS). Furthermore, all three next-gen systems have had incredibly lackluster launches, with 90% of the launch selection either being already available on other platforms, or being "ok, I guess" at best. The Wii U has had a year to find it's feet (and some decent games), and I believe <i>Super Mario 3D World </i>is the console's first steps to greatness. That said it is still not quite a "system seller".<br /><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U3A60mNXI6k/UrL6opBqv5I/AAAAAAAABOA/tDuBQ4ekdkA/s1600/super-mario-3d-world-41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U3A60mNXI6k/UrL6opBqv5I/AAAAAAAABOA/tDuBQ4ekdkA/s400/super-mario-3d-world-41.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meow!</td></tr></tbody></table><div><i>Super Mario 3D World</i> is the direct sequel to <i>Super Mario 3D Land</i> on the 3DS (a fantastic game in it's own right). Furthermore, it is the first 3D Mario platformer on the Wii U, and the first major Mario title without Godfather Shigeru Miyamoto's direct influence. So even before it had been released, it had some pretty big shoes to fill.<br /><br />The feature that sets this game apart from other Mario games (apart from the cat suit, but we’ll get to that later), is it’s co-op (and sometimes, not so co-op) multiplayer. Yes, it has been done before in <i>New Super Mario Bros. Wii</i>, but this is the first time it’s been done in a 3D Mario, and furthermore, it brings back the unique abilities of Peach, Luigi, Toad and Mario from <i>Super Mario Bros. 2</i>. Luigi jumps a bit higher, Peach has her “floaty” jumps, Toad runs faster and Mario is the all-rounder. Even if you’re playing the game in singleplayer, each character feels just unique enough to warrant switching things up from time to time.<br /><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C0ze-FvuYyo/UrL3SXwv2dI/AAAAAAAABNw/pNeSRGOF_x4/s1600/super_mario_3d_world_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C0ze-FvuYyo/UrL3SXwv2dI/AAAAAAAABNw/pNeSRGOF_x4/s400/super_mario_3d_world_3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The game is best played multiplayer with a group of good friends</td></tr></tbody></table><div>But, this game should be played with friends. It is couch co-op at it’s finest. I've always been baffled by most console maker's decision to eschew local multiplayer in favor of online. Online play on any console is always going to be a vastly inferior system to what’s available (for free) on the PC, so why not focus on local multiplayer, something the PC struggles with and fits the console perfectly? <br /><br />Thankfully, Nintendo is still pushing that agenda, and <i>Super Mario 3D World</i> is very indicative of that. The game is fantastic fun to play with friends, and it works really well. There were very few times where it felt like we were “fighting” the camera, or felt considerably disadvantaged for having multiple players. There’s a nice little competitive element to it too - the player with the most points at the end of each level gets a “crown,” so there is always this mad dash to get the most points. Multiplayer in Super Mario 3D world is a kind of maddening chaos that still somehow feels natural, with a few of the levels in particular even seeming to be designed with multiplayer in mind.<br /><br />I should take some time to talk about how the game looks, because it is absolutely gorgeous. That 1080p/60fps benchmark that games on the Xbox One and PS4 are struggling to hit? <i>3D World</i> pulls it off like a <b>boss</b>. The game never once struggled to keep its framerate, despite the fact that it was outputting to both the TV and the gamepad. The cartoony graphics of the Mario universe really pop out at you; characters feel alive, stages feel vast, and the color scheme is a welcome explosion of vibrant yellow and green in the face of the gaming world’s current obsession with brown and gray. When you add a jazzy, upbeat soundtrack that has plenty of catchy, memorable tunes, you’ve got yourself a game that looks and sounds as fun as it plays.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5TwVqcrt1zw/UrL3RyZRxeI/AAAAAAAABNo/1zqS0lGFx54/s1600/super_mario_3d_world-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5TwVqcrt1zw/UrL3RyZRxeI/AAAAAAAABNo/1zqS0lGFx54/s400/super_mario_3d_world-4.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Super Mario 3D World's</i> vibrant colors are a welcome change from modern gaming's obsession with brown and gray.</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>3D World </i>brings back a lot of old favorite powerups, such as the fire flower and super leaf, as well as bringing in some items from recent Mario games (such as <i>3D Land’s</i> boomerang suit and<i> New Super Mario Bros.’</i> mega mushroom). Completely new to the game are the cat suit and the double cherry. The cat suit is the game's "big new item", with many levels, and many, many secrets being designed around it. Basically, it allows you to climb up walls, melee attack enemies, and perform a jump-dive attack. The first two skills are exceptionally useful at finding secrets and defeating enemies, while the third is exceptionally useful at diving you right off the edge of the map. Seriously. I was deathly afraid of using it most of the time because cat-Mario has some kind of death wish that can only be satisfied by leaping into the abyss.</div><div><br />The double cherry creates a “clone” of your character. It appears fairly rarely in the game, and while is a neat new idea, I feel like they didn't take the opportunity to properly explore it. It could have made for some total madness in multiplayer games to have levels just brimming with cherries, generating an insane amount of players on-screen at once.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5RpVar8uYU/UrL3Q0VGF1I/AAAAAAAABNs/Mw-_gIVj76Q/s1600/sm3w_screens_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5RpVar8uYU/UrL3Q0VGF1I/AAAAAAAABNs/Mw-_gIVj76Q/s400/sm3w_screens_18.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The double cherry has a lot of missed potential as a power up</td></tr></tbody></table><div>The game has the classic Mario difficulty curve, with the first world being complete-able by your grandma, and the final world driving even hardened veterans insane. There is a huge amount of content, with seven standard worlds and three bonus worlds - it’ll take you quite a while to get through it all, and the challenges are surmountable, but satisfying. The only thing that’s a bit lacking is the boss fights, with several of them simply being repeats, and most of them being pretty easy. I beat the final boss, for example, on my very first try.<br /><br />I also had a small problem with the fifth unlockable character, Rosalina, being made available so far into the game. She is actually a pretty unique character, and is a much more interesting than Toad (sorry, Toad fans!) so it would have been nice to use her in the earlier levels, especially in multiplayer.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sIBxAG0KZL4/UrL3QKzMxcI/AAAAAAAABNA/7q5YX3I4XbI/s1600/Super-Mario-3D-World-screenshot-14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sIBxAG0KZL4/UrL3QKzMxcI/AAAAAAAABNA/7q5YX3I4XbI/s400/Super-Mario-3D-World-screenshot-14.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The boss fights are not exactly satisfying</td></tr></tbody></table>Shoe-horned into the game, as seems to always be the case these days, are some social networking features. In this case, Nintendo’s Miiverse network bleeds in, with player’s Miis scattered throughout levels spouting whatever nonsense they last posted in the game’s Miiverse community. I don’t know how it is for English speakers, but for the Japanese version of the game, most of them were just cute pictures made with the game’s unlockable stamps. No real harm done, but it doesn’t really add anything to the game either.<br /><br />I’m in kind of two worlds on my last point, which is also the reason why I don’t believe this game is a “system seller” for the Wii U. Basically, the game does not really take any advantage of the unique capabilities of the system. The gamepad’s screen simply replicates the action on the main screen for player one, and while there is a “touch baddies to make them stop/touch areas to reveal secrets” feature, it feels more like a last-minute addition than something that’s integral to the game (and it’s certainly not integral to the game). On the one hand, I think this is bad because it really does not “sell” the system, but on the other hand, I honestly don't think the game would benefit from it anyway. It may have even been detrimental to "force" more gamepad features into the game.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HQZ4sw99wRQ/UrL3QGxStyI/AAAAAAAABNI/kdqytjwzMXM/s1600/Super-Mario-3D-World-22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HQZ4sw99wRQ/UrL3QGxStyI/AAAAAAAABNI/kdqytjwzMXM/s400/Super-Mario-3D-World-22.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The catsuit, contrary to the double cherry, is a great new powerup for the Mario universe</td></tr></tbody></table><div>Is <i>Super Mario 3D</i> world a fantastic game? Yes. Does it sell the unique features of the Wii U? No. If you already own the system it’s a no-brainer, but I honestly doubt people will be rushing out to buy a Wii U for it. Furthermore, to your average Joe, it only exacerbates the problem of people thinking the Wii U is just an addon for the Wii, rather than a new system. There’s nothing, apart from the improved graphics (which average Joe doesn't really notice anyway), that distinctly sets it apart from say, <i>Super Mario Galaxy</i>.<br /><br />That said, you probably should rush out and buy a Wii U for this game, because it’s flipping amazing.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5_PbR_r6VyE/UrL3RQQAJzI/AAAAAAAABNc/mTTaLZrGk5Y/s1600/super-mario-3d-world-wii-u-6-640x366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5_PbR_r6VyE/UrL3RQQAJzI/AAAAAAAABNc/mTTaLZrGk5Y/s400/super-mario-3d-world-wii-u-6-640x366.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The game, unfortunately, does not take good advantage of the Wii U's unique features</td></tr></tbody></table><div><b>Verdict: Buy</b></div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>Liked the review?&nbsp;Subscribe to my&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos">Twitter</a> and my <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178">YouTube channel</a>&nbsp;for up-to-date gaming news!</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/tag/super%20mario%203d%20world">Have a look at my Escapist articles pertaining to <i>Super Mario 3D World.</i></a></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-65207506311077105942013-11-27T18:51:00.005+09:002013-11-27T20:31:53.306+09:00REVIEW: Battlefield 4 (PC)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lYmnCnadBzo/UpSQOdimQYI/AAAAAAAABKU/rmMjyYxWqtQ/s1600/bf4-logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="73" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lYmnCnadBzo/UpSQOdimQYI/AAAAAAAABKU/rmMjyYxWqtQ/s400/bf4-logo.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />I would like to preface this review by stating that I will, at no point, talk about the game's singleplayer campaign, because honestly, who gives a damn? No-one is rushing out to buy&nbsp;<i>Call of Duty</i> or <i>Battlefield </i>for their compelling, human stories.&nbsp;People buy <i>Battlefield </i>for the multiplayer, and the multiplayer alone, so it only seems fair that I review the game based solely on its multiplayer merits.<br /><br />So here we are, just two years out from the release of <i>Battlefield 3</i>, and less than a year since the last <i>Battlefield 3</i> DLC. If you're thinking that the game could not have possibly changed much in such a short time you'd be right. The difference between the games is not like the huge jump between <i>Battlfield 2 </i>and <i>Battlefield 3</i>, and more like the incremental upgrade between <i>Bad Company 1</i> and <i>Bad Company 2.</i> However, this doesn't necessarily mean the game is automatically not worth your money. There is still an enormous amount of new content, engine upgrades, and gameplay modifications here to satisfy the&nbsp;<i>Battlefield </i>fans, while still being welcoming to newcomers of the series. That said, it is also not without its own shortcomings.<br /><br />Let's start with the game's much touted new feature, the one that practically screams "next-gen" at the top of its lungs. It's called "leveloution" - the ability to use explosives and interact-able objects to physically alter how a map plays. For example, in Flood Zone, you can destroy a levee, which floods the entire map with water, replacing land-based vehicles with boats. In another, Siege of Shanghai, you can bring down an entire skyscraper, making the capture point (previously at the top of the building) much more accessible.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pSvEElt5_E8/UpSQ7Q8wrhI/AAAAAAAABKs/JhELPYFgpUw/s1600/BF4_Levolution_Siege_of_Shanghai_WM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pSvEElt5_E8/UpSQ7Q8wrhI/AAAAAAAABKs/JhELPYFgpUw/s400/BF4_Levolution_Siege_of_Shanghai_WM.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Leveloution" can be pretty hit-and-miss.</td></tr></tbody></table>Leveloution is pretty hit-and-miss. In some maps it is&nbsp;fairly easy to pull off just by a single, determined player, and is&nbsp;a really cool testament to the game's physics engine. On other maps, such as Lachang Dam, it requires several people to fire roughly twelve gazillion rocket at an object for a rather unimpressive effect that only barely alters how the map plays. Fortunately, I would say that overall it is more hit than miss, with at least six of the ten maps making good use of the feature. My personal favorites were the aforementioned Flood Zone, and Parcel Storm - a map which as well as having a periodic storm that whips up the seas, making boats and aircraft a more precarious option, also features a massive battleship that dramatically beaches itself on one of the map's islands.<br /><br />Maps like Parcel Storm and Siege of Shanghai really show off just how beautiful the Frostbite 3 engine is. I played the game on a pretty beefy gaming PC, and it looked absolutely gorgeous. Those of you who played <i>BF3 </i>on a mid-to-high-range gaming PC won't notice too huge of a change, but the difference between <i>BF3 </i>on the 360/PS3 and <i>BF4 </i>on the Xbox One/PS4 is night and day. The big focus this time around is particle effects and physics, which help showcase the game's dynamic maps.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sr73poq1hpQ/UpSQNUQXsfI/AAAAAAAABKY/g1grzaDAmJ8/s1600/bf4+2013-11-26+18-01-33-19.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sr73poq1hpQ/UpSQNUQXsfI/AAAAAAAABKY/g1grzaDAmJ8/s400/bf4+2013-11-26+18-01-33-19.bmp" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The game has a good range of map diversity.</td></tr></tbody></table>So (most of) the maps are good, and the game looks great, but how does it actually play? Very similar to <i>BF3</i>, if I'm being honest. Veterans will be able to jump right into the game without skipping a beat, as the core <i>Battlefield </i>infantry vs. vehicles rock-paper-scissors mechanics are still there. The recon class has had a little bit of a mix-up, with the "spec ops" loadout returning from <i>Battlefield 2</i>, allowing him to equip shorter-range rifles along with C4 and motion sensors, while the other classes have simply been given more toys to play with. The classes have more diversity in weapon choice, with everyone being able to equip carbines, shotguns, and the semi-automatic "designated marksman rifles".<br /><br />Possibly the biggest change veterans will notice with loadouts is that you can now choose any two gadgets, instead of being "locked in" to a secondary gadget. The engineer, for example, can have both an RPG and a stinger equipped, or the support can pack C4 and claymores.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-62dl_BfwBtk/UpSQK6sAW6I/AAAAAAAABJs/UUFFolwiyyc/s1600/bf4+2013-11-26+17-08-05-86.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-62dl_BfwBtk/UpSQK6sAW6I/AAAAAAAABJs/UUFFolwiyyc/s400/bf4+2013-11-26+17-08-05-86.bmp" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Customization" is the key word for <i>Battlefield 4</i></td></tr></tbody></table>Also, instead of the personal/squad perks of <i>BF3</i>, each class has a "specialization" they can choose. Each specialization has four "levels" of perks, which unlock gradually as you perform squad actions, such as supplying ammo to squadmates or capturing an objective marked by your squad leader. Everyone has access to the basic offense, defense and stealth specs, but each class also has two of its own unique specs. For example, the assault class has the "combat medic" spec, which increases the effectiveness of his healing abilities. Furthermore, if you entire squad is wiped out, the levels earned for your specialization get reset back to level 1, meaning there is a bigger incentive to work together as a team, and try and survive if you are the last squad member standing, rather than just Rambo-ing everything.<br /><br />"Customization" is the big word for <i>Battlefield 4</i>, and in addition to the class loadout changes and the plethora of new and confusing weapon attachments you can choose from (what the heck is a "potato grip"?), vehicle customization has received a much-needed overhaul. Gunners for land vehicles now have a separate loadout selection, just like their attack chopper counterparts. Jets have been split into two classes (attack jets and stealth jets) and boats have been completely redesigned to be more than mere transports, complete with their own loadout and unlocks.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uw2nhcKdsJU/UpSQLsk_EAI/AAAAAAAABJ8/aunu7X0975E/s1600/bf4+2013-11-26+17-25-10-80.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uw2nhcKdsJU/UpSQLsk_EAI/AAAAAAAABJ8/aunu7X0975E/s400/bf4+2013-11-26+17-25-10-80.bmp" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The game looks fantastic and plays well.</td></tr></tbody></table>In order to help deal with the massive influx of new items, DICE has introduced "battlepacks", which are earned at various milestones, and grant three to five random unlocks upon being opened. It's a pretty cool system, but I feel it's missing some kind of trading option, so I can trade with my friends to get the attachments I want for my favorite guns, rather than just hoping to get lucky.<br /><br />Also new is the "commander mode", which allows one player on each team to be view the game from a birds-eye view, and issue orders, drop supplies, and call in support options such as gunships and cruise missiles. It's a nice little feature, and the fact that it runs on tablets makes it a great little tablet game, but in the end it's just too simple to be more than a temporary distraction. I worry that in the near future the commander population will drastically drop as the playerbase grows weary of it. This is bad, as if one team has a commander and the other team doesn't, it puts the no-commander team at a noticeable disadvantage.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jBBXoQwxht0/UpSUmNt4BJI/AAAAAAAABK4/JYOgiXOaxiA/s1600/bf4+2013-11-26+21-23-08-68.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jBBXoQwxht0/UpSUmNt4BJI/AAAAAAAABK4/JYOgiXOaxiA/s400/bf4+2013-11-26+21-23-08-68.bmp" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Commander mode is too simple to be anything more than a distraction.</td></tr></tbody></table><i>Battlefield 4</i> is fun to play. It's a good upgrade from <i>Battlefield 3&nbsp;</i>that fixes a lot of problems players had with the game, and if it wasn't for what I am about to say, I would whole-heatedly recommend it for both veterans of the series, and newcomers looking for a new multiplayer FPS to play on Friday nights.<br /><br />However. <b>However</b>. The game is absolutely riddled with bugs. Battlelog, which was already a mess in <i>BF3</i>, has not really improved at all for <i>BF4</i>, refusing to connect to games, download updates, or even open at all for seemingly no reason. I was (and still am) unable to get its"battlescreen" feature to work on my tablet. In game, the sound cuts out in certain areas. There are graphical glitches. Weapons sometimes do not behave the way they are supposed to, and then there are the random crashes. When I first started playing, I was lucky to go 15 minutes without a crash. I now crash, on average, every two rounds. It's very obvious that the game was rushed to meet the next-gen console launch, and even now, several weeks after launch, the issues are still very glaring.<br /><br /><i>Battlefield 4</i> is a fantastic game, but it's not ready yet. Check back in a month.<br /><div><br /></div><div><b>Verdict: Don't Buy (yet)</b></div></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-82014212520292839482013-09-23T22:12:00.000+09:002013-09-25T16:49:56.382+09:00Tokyo Game ShowThis is it. I've hit the big time. I literally spent three days in Tokyo playing video games, taking pictures of girls in skimpy outfits, eating delicious pizza, and getting paid for it (well, except for the pizza). This was my first year to attend Tokyo Game Show as press, and it was a really amazing experience.<br /><br />Two years ago, I attended the show on one of the "open-to-all" public days. It was an... experience to say the least, but the incredibly massive crowds and lackluster games put me off attending it the following year. However, thanks to my gig at the Escapist, this year I scored a press pass, which changed the game considerably.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/600/600003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/600/600003.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">On the press days, I was free to pursue the games at my leisure. Lines were rarely longer than 20 minutes, and I could use my "press pass powers" to skip them entirely in some cases. Furthermore, there was a fantastic selection of games on display that I actually wanted to play, and I got a bunch of cool freebies just for being press.</div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Speaking of the games, <i>Titanfall </i>was far-and-away my pick for best in show. It felt smooth, slick, and polished enough to be released tomorrow, and was just a whole lot of fast-paced high-octane fun. Check out my hands-on preview for it <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127956-Titanfall-Hands-On-Preview-Like-CoD-on-Steroids">here</a>.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Microsoft impressed me overall a lot more than Sony. I was not a fan of the DualShock 4 at all, and none of the game's that Sony was showcasing for the PS4 really caught my eye. Sony hyped up this keynote speech on the first day, then went on to spend an hour talking about Facebook and casual gamers. Yawn.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/600/600023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/600/600023.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Other cool games I got to play were <i>Ryse: Son of Rome, Battlefield 4 </i>and <i>Wolfenstien: The New Order. </i>Being a big <i>Battlefield </i>fanboy, I was pumped to get my hands on the latest game, but also being a member of the PC gaming master race meant that I was constantly frustrated by the limited PS4 controller.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I also attended one of the much-dreaded public days, but with some good friends by my side, and a plethora of amazing cosplayers to entertain me, I still had a fantastic time.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, that was my Tokyo Game Show 2013 experience, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I eagerly await my next opportunity to attend any convention as press, as it really changes the whole experience substantially. Maybe I can squeeze a visit back home for PAX Australia next year...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/600/600747.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/600/600747.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Here are links to all of my coverage from the show:</div><ul><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127943-Sony-Aims-to-Sell-5-Million-PS4s-in-2013">Sony Aims to Sell 5 Million PS4s in 2013</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127947-Deep-Down-Hands-On-Preview-Clunky-And-Gray"><i>Deep Down</i> Hands On Preview: Clunky And Gray</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127955-PlayStation-App-is-Facebook-for-PlayStation">PlayStation App is Facebook for PlayStation</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127956-Titanfall-Hands-On-Preview-Like-CoD-on-Steroids"><i>Titanfall</i> Hands On Preview: Like CoD on Steroids</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127997-The-Evil-Within-Puts-Survival-Back-Into-Survival-Horror"><i>The Evil Within</i> Puts "Survival" Back Into Survival Horror</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127994-Tokyo-Game-Show-in-Pictures-Part-1-Business-Days">Tokyo Game Show in Pictures Part 1: Business Days</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/128035-Ryse-Son-of-Rome-Hands-On-Preview-Are-You-Not-Entertained"><i>Ryse: Son of Rome</i> Hands On Preview: Are You Not Entertained?</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/128037-Tokyo-Game-Show-in-Pictures-Part-2-Cosplay-Highlights">Tokyo Game Show in Pictures Part 2: Cosplay Highlights</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/128039-Battlefield-4-Hands-On-Preview-Incremental-Upgrades"><i>Battlefield 4</i> Hands On Preview: Incremental Upgrades</a></li><li><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127944-PS-Vita-TV-Will-Support-DualShock-4">PS Vita TV Will Support DualShock 4</a></li></ul><div><span style="color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;">Subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and be sure to check out my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none;">Escapist profile&nbsp;</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;">for daily updates</span><span style="color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;">!</span></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-74152258649676654842013-09-07T15:00:00.001+09:002013-09-07T15:06:05.762+09:00Kickstarter - You're Doing it Wrong<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sSH13p7DBtY/UiSGhSGLYKI/AAAAAAAABHU/oIO5MU1bklM/s1600/Kickstarter_Logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sSH13p7DBtY/UiSGhSGLYKI/AAAAAAAABHU/oIO5MU1bklM/s400/Kickstarter_Logo.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>In a perfect world, Kickstarter would give traditional-style funding a run for its money, resulting in perfect profits for developers and tailor-made games for the fans. However, ours is far from a perfect world, and Kickstarter has a long way to go before it can be considered a viable alternative in games development. I believe there are three big obstacles standing in the way of that: Big Names, Big Ideas and Big Fans.<br /><br />Let's start with Big Names: I am talking about big, well-established game creators taking to Kickstarter to fund their projects. Tim Schafer, Keiji Inafune, Richard Garriott - these are all people who have used their "star power" to smash Kickstarter records as their legions of fans lined up to throw money at them. I'm of the opinion that these big names should not be allowed on the service at all. Kickstarter should be a place where up-and-commers, looking to break into the industry with an interesting new idea, can float that idea to everyday schmoes like you and me, who then decide if it's something worth backing.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>"[Kickstarter] should not be a place for Keiji Inafune to get easy money for another <i>Mega Man</i> game"</b></span></blockquote>It should not be a place for Keiji Inafune to get easy money for another <i>Mega Man</i> game. Keiji Inafune is Keiji fucking Inafune. His <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mightyno9/mighty-no-9"><i>Mighty No. 9 </i>Kickstarter</a> raised over half a million dollars in a single day. It hit its funding goal within a week. And no one should have been surprised by this. Wow, you managed to raise a boatload of money for what is essentially an HD remake of a game that has millions of followers and is widely regarded as a cult classic? Well done. The only thing easier would be raising money for an <i>Ocarina of Time</i> remake. People with as much pull as Inafune should not be on Kickstarter. If Inafune can't find someone outside of Kickstarter to back his <i>Mega Man </i>remake then he's doing it wrong.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D_5rz7Hy89k/UiSGUyFwReI/AAAAAAAABHM/S1Pj8ELlC6w/s1600/photo-main.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D_5rz7Hy89k/UiSGUyFwReI/AAAAAAAABHM/S1Pj8ELlC6w/s400/photo-main.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">(Not Mega Man)</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Richard Garriott also <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/portalarium/shroud-of-the-avatar-forsaken-virtues-0">raised almost $2 million for his Kickstarter project</a>. Do you know what Richard Garriott does in his spare time? <a href="http://www.richardinspace.com/">He goes to space</a>. The guy who can afford to go to space and has more money than you or I will ever see in our entire lifetimes needs a Kickstarter to raise funds? You've got to be kidding me.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/doublefine/double-fine-adventure">Tim Schafer's Kickstarter</a> tells a similar story, raising an unreal $3 million for something that’s just a concept. People threw money at <i>Broken Age</i> before it even had a God-damn title. You're telling me you had so little faith in finding someone to invest in a Double Fine adventure game that you had to take it to Kickstarter? Bullshit. If your obscure, action-adventure/RTS hybrid that no-one asked for, <i>Brutal Legend,</i> can find funding through official channels, then the adventure game that fans have been begging for since <i>Grim Fandango</i> sure as hell should be able to.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>"People threw money at <i>Broken Age</i> before it even had a God-damn title"</b></span></blockquote>Schafer's story also ties in to our next point perfectly: Big Ideas. Schafer asked for $400,00 for what was basically a gleam in his eye. He got eight times that amount. So what does he do? Humbly accept the money and deliver the most awesome game his fans could ask for? No. <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125624-Broken-Age-Needs-More-Money">The guy says that it's still not enough.</a> I'm sorry, but if three million dollars can't make your game, you should not be shilling that game on Kickstarter.&nbsp;<i>Star Citizen</i>&nbsp;has&nbsp;<a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/7.827155-Star-Citizen-Funds-Top-17-Million">raised $17 million</a>, and Chris Roberts has the nerve to say he avoided the publisher route because he thought it would be too "niche" of a game.&nbsp;Kickstarter is to <b>kickstart </b>projects, not provide an endless stream of money for you to waste on Big Ideas.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pLrPAr7kwr4/UiSG1PiBKAI/AAAAAAAABHc/cNlvGFIJQ_c/s1600/wario+with+treasure.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="275" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pLrPAr7kwr4/UiSG1PiBKAI/AAAAAAAABHc/cNlvGFIJQ_c/s400/wario+with+treasure.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Tim Schafer</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Big Ideas also refers to the cautionary tales of failed projects. American McGee's <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125970-American-McGee-Cancels-His-OZombie-Kickstarter">failed <i>OZombie</i> Kickstarter</a> is representative of this, something that the developer actually admits himself - These kinds of Big Idea games are simply too big for Kickstarter. I'm also talking about projects that meet their goals, <a href="http://kickfailure.com/2012/11/14/project-disaster-hanfree-ipad-accessory/">and then don't deliver on the product</a>. Giving money to a project on Kickstarter is essentially an investment with no return - if the Kickstarter succeeds, you will, at most, get your money back, and if it fails, your money’s lost forever. There's no real incentive for fans to back a project on Kickstarter, especially when the Big Names raising millions more than what they ask for are hogging the spotlight.<br /><br />I'm sure a lot of you are reading this and saying, "But Steven, the biggest draw of Kickstarter is that the fans get to help design the game," to which I retort: "I can think of nothing more horrifying than fans having a say in game design."<br /><br />Big Fans are probably the worst part about Kickstarter. I'm going to put this out there, and I dare you to disagree with me: most people that post anything on the internet are morons. Don't get me wrong; there is are a lot of fantastic gems hiding out there, great ideas from brilliant people, but the overwhelming majority of it is crap. Don't believe me? Go to YouTube, look through the most recent video uploads. Start from the top and watch every video, start to finish, until you find one that's good. I challenge you to find a single entertaining video before you gouge your eyes out with a rusty spoon.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w37fAa2MD0o/UiSHe7LhfII/AAAAAAAABHo/HPbE7WDeMm0/s1600/Bad-Tweets.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w37fAa2MD0o/UiSHe7LhfII/AAAAAAAABHo/HPbE7WDeMm0/s320/Bad-Tweets.png" width="304" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Fan feedback</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Do you really want these people having their hand in game design - the immature, moronic, racist, sexist assholes who inhabit the likes of Xbox Live and the YouTube comments section? If you're saying, "But Steven, these people would never donate money on Kickstarter," then I would call you a naive fool. Consider, for example, the nasty snare the <i>Skullgirls </i>IndieGoGo campaign hit thanks to “these people.”<br /><br />Basically, the <i>Skullgirls </i>crowdfunder promised two "Mystery Characters" that all backers would be able to vote on. So what do you think happened when some backers' favorite characters got voted out? That they took it in stride and decided that though their favorite character was no longer in the race, they would keep supporting the developer and its vision anyway? Maybe in the land of sunshine and rainbows, but in the real world they took their ball and went home, demanding refunds when their characters of choice got knocked out of the vote. It got to the point where <a href="http://www.vg247.com/2013/04/23/skullgirls-crowdfunding-stymied-by-paypal/">PayPal froze all of the campaign's funds</a> due to chargebacks.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>"Simply put, fans don't know what the fuck they are talking about"</b></span></blockquote>And these are the people that I am supposed to trust with major decisions about game development? No fucking way. The Xbox One, which admittedly didn't have the greatest PR team, tried to do something drastically different and original, but was met with so much hatred and nerdrage that it has since reverted to the exact same thing as the PS4. Even the Kinect, which is one of the only things left that sets it apart from the competition, is still under intense pressure from "fans" to be removed. If you look at the film industry, you’ll see the same effect. Ben Affleck being cast as Batman was met with <a href="http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/ben-affleck-batman-petition-drop-2224339">a wave of internet QQ</a>, despite this actually being a pretty good choice considering Affleck's prior acting and directing accolades, his great love of comic books, and his physical appearance.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QUQbL0kVBUY/UiSH14QU3yI/AAAAAAAABHw/rgXoYcHUfkY/s1600/battfleck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="218" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QUQbL0kVBUY/UiSH14QU3yI/AAAAAAAABHw/rgXoYcHUfkY/s400/battfleck.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Instant nerdrage, just add Twitter</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Henry "I invented the weekend" Ford said it best: "If I asked my customers what they wanted, they would have said 'a faster horse.'" Simply put, fans don't know what the fuck they are talking about. Yes, listening to fan and player feedback is very important, but being beholden to your fans is a very scary scenario. <i>Call of Duty</i> "fans" <a href="http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-07-24-cod-developer-appeals-for-calm-after-death-threats">sent death threats</a> to developers when they applied minor tweaks to some <i>Black Ops II</i> weapons. Can you imagine a world where such people actually have a hand (however minor) in the development of a video game?<br /><br />These are the three big problems I have with crowd-funding. I'm sure in time, when Big Name developers stop using it as their personal piggy-bank, Big Ideas make way for Realistic Ideas, and Big Fans learn to stop destroying everything they love, Kickstarter will become a very common alternative path for game development. I don't believe Kickstarter will ever replace traditional publishers, nor do I think it should. It has its place in the games industry, but it is a far cry from the be-all-end-all that people make it out to be. It also somewhat baffles me that we have become such a consumerist society, that people are willing to pay for products that don't even exist yet… perhaps a topic for another post!<br /><br />Just some food for thought.<br /><br />-Steven<br /><div><br /></div><div><b>Author's note: </b>Thanks for reading guys. As always, if you want to tell me I'm a fucking moron please take to the comments section below, any feedback or criticism is welcome.<br /><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and be sure to check out my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Escapist profile&nbsp;</a>for daily updates<span style="font-weight: normal;">!</span></span></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-89198264096180956192013-08-22T11:39:00.002+09:002013-08-22T11:39:50.807+09:00I'm not dead yet!Hey guys, just a quick update to let you know that yes, I am still alive. I know I haven't updated the blog in over a month, I've been pretty pre-occupied with work and holidays. I visited Australia over the summer vacation, ate a lot of amazing food, and got to see a lot of my friends and family. I even got to host my traditional LAN party, which had plenty of Street Fighter, Civ 5, and of course, bad movies.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/1119902_10152261504449657_904979434_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/1119902_10152261504449657_904979434_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lan Party</td></tr></tbody></table>Then, when I got back to Japan, I road-tripped down to the Izu peninsula just south of Tokyo to catch some sunshine and get some swimming in. While obviously not as good as the beaches in Okinawa or Australia, I still had a fantastic time. For me, it's not truly summer vacation until I've hit the beach at least once, and Izu delivered on that. Plus, the hostel we stayed at was fucking awesome, it was in this 100-year old Japanese style building that had been completely renovated and was just gorgeous.<br /><br />Now, I'm nearing the end of my holiday, unfortunately. Just five more days! Why is it that summer vacation blows by so fast??? I know I've done quite a bit this summer, but it also feels like I've done absolutely nothing. I guess it didn't help that when I got back I really threw myself into my work.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d12oPlpgEgI/UhV5gjQ0RGI/AAAAAAAABFg/R6O3sDm7VLA/s1600/20130817_124224.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-d12oPlpgEgI/UhV5gjQ0RGI/AAAAAAAABFg/R6O3sDm7VLA/s400/20130817_124224.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Enjoying the "view" at the beach...</td></tr></tbody></table>On that front, next month I will be attending Tokyo Game Show as an official media representative of the Escapist Magazine! I'm pretty excited about this, it'll be my first time going to the show's exclusive "press-only" days, and it'll be great to get to try out the new next-gen consoles. I <b>really </b>hope <i>Titanfall </i>will be playable!<br /><br />I also may have another journalism opportunity coming up. It's too early to share details yet, but let's just say if everything pans out, I may be able to quit my day job as a teacher and work on my writing full time!<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://web-vassets.ea.com/Assets/Resources/Image/Screenshots/TF-Panoramic-Overwatch.jpg?cb=1371482282" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://web-vassets.ea.com/Assets/Resources/Image/Screenshots/TF-Panoramic-Overwatch.jpg?cb=1371482282" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Titanfall</i></td></tr></tbody></table>As for my regular Escapist news posts, I'm not going to repost them here this time! Sorry, but it's been over a month and I'd have to post like a hundred stories, which would just be way too much.<br /><br />So instead, I urge you to just check out my <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts">Escapist profile</a>, which lists all of my posted articles, and please subscribe to my <a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos">Twitter</a>, where I post <b>every </b>article as soon as I've written it.Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-68133143724597108522013-07-29T22:20:00.000+09:002013-07-29T22:23:23.755+09:00NEWS: Monday UpdateHi everyone. Bit of exciting news for you all this week, I'm heading back to Australia on Friday! Just for ten days though, a little bit of a holiday to see everyone again. Also, when I get back to Japan, I'm going to head up to Izu for a bit of a beach getaway (it's not a real summer vacation until I've been to the beach!)<br /><br />As such, don't expect too much in the way of updates for the coming month! My Escapist news stories will also probably see a bit of a decline.<br /><br />Last week was my "training week" for my day job as an English teacher. It was good to see all the Nasushiobara ALTs again, and to cap it off we had a poker night on Saturday. It's a very nice change of pace from my regular teaching work, and a good lead in to my lengthy summer vacation.<br /><br />I bought a car this week! It may just be a Kei car, and it may have only cost me $500, but it's a car nonetheless. Even if I end up going back home in March, I'll have still saved money over renting every month, and if I do decide to stay another year, I'll end up saving a LOT of money.<br /><br />On that front, it's looking more and more likely I will end up staying here one more year. Next year, my car, and my apartment's start up fees will be completely paid off, and with my current work pace at the Escapist I reckon I can save up a LOT of money. I do miss being home, and it's particularly hard with several of my best friends in the country having left Japan earlier this year, but at this stage in my life it may be best to just burrow down, save up a wad of cash, and then blow it all on a big vacation (or... sensibly save it with the intention of possibly buying a house...). It would be nice to visit all my friends in America...<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/1078691_10152230499919657_543777330_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/1078691_10152230499919657_543777330_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new car</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyway, here are the last couple of week's stories (sorry about no update last week):</span><br /><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125966" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Martian Manhunter Joins The&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Injustice: Gods Among Us</i>&nbsp;Roster</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125968" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Evo 2013 Champions Revealed</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125970" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">American McGee Cancels His&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">OZombie</i>&nbsp;Kickstarter</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126014" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Oculus Wants To Release The Rift For Free</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126015" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Good Old Games: Pirates Are Our Competition, Not Steam</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126052" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Skyrim</i>&nbsp;Mod Adds&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Dishonored</i>'s Signature Abilities</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit; line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126053" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><i style="outline: none;">State of Decay</i>&nbsp;PC Version Features Exclusive Enhancements</a></span></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126091" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Team Fortress 2</i>&nbsp;Update Kills Idle Servers</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126092" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">League of Legends</i>&nbsp;Unleashes Spirit Guard Udyr</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126126" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Battlefield 4</i>'s Buildings Have Advanced Falling-Over Mechanics</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126127" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">7 Days to Die</i><span style="line-height: 16px;">&nbsp;Is&nbsp;</span><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">DayZ</i><span style="line-height: 16px;">&nbsp;Crossed With&nbsp;</span><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Minecraft</i></span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126129" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Dead Rising 3</i>&nbsp;Ditches The Race Against The Clock</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126132" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">How&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">The Stick of Truth</i>'s Ambition Got Out of Control</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126160" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Street Fighter</i>&nbsp;Live Action TV Show Starts Filming</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126163" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">New Technology Lets You Physically Feel Virtual Objects</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126166" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Gearbox Announces HD Remakes of&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Homeworld</i>&nbsp;1 And 2</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126167" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Borderlands 2</i>&nbsp;Getting Level Cap Increase, Extra Missions, Raid Bosses</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126174" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Saints Row IV</i>&nbsp;Had to Drop Bollywood Dance Number Ending</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126175" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Battlefield 4</i>&nbsp;Singleplayer Campaign Details</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126179" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">First&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Saints Row IV</i>&nbsp;DLC Detailed And Dated</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126180" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Nvidia Shield Ships On July 31</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126182" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Microsoft Vows To Fight Government Spying Via Kinect</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126218" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Nintendo Stock at a 2 Year High</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126220" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">All&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Left 4 Dead 2</i>&nbsp;Maps Soloed On Expert By Crazy Person</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126262" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Pokemon</i><span style="line-height: 16px;">&nbsp;Dev's New Game Combines Horse Riding and&nbsp;</span><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Solitaire</i></span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126266" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">EA Loses Lawsuit To Original&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Madden</i>&nbsp;Creator</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126305" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Eidos Founder: Square Enix Needs to Learn How to Sell Games</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126306" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Saints Row IV</i>&nbsp;Season Pass Includes Anal Probe Weapon</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126308" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">"Project Logan" Brings Direct X 11 To Smartphones</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126336" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Super Smash Bros.</i>&nbsp;3DS And Wii U Drops Story Mode</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126337" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Ace Attorney 5</i>&nbsp;DLC Adds a Full New Case</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126338" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Don Mattrick Details His Plans to Turn Zynga Around</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126340" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Activision Blizzard to Buy Out Vivendi's Shares</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126378" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Battlefield 4</i>'s Battlelog is a Seamless Second Screen Experience</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126390" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Xbox 360 Gets Indie Self Publishing Too</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126393" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Saints Row IV</i>&nbsp;Refused Classification in Australia (Again)</span></a></li></ul><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Top stories:</span></b><br /><div><div style="font-weight: bold;"></div><ul style="font-weight: bold;"><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126385" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Fez</i>&nbsp;Dev Tells Media Member To Kill Himself</span></a></li></ul><div style="font-weight: bold;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="font-weight: bold; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/570/570585.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/570/570585.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Fez </i>director Phil Fish</td></tr></tbody></table><ul><li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit; line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><b><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125961" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><i style="outline: none;">Skyrim</i>&nbsp;Mod:&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Falskaar</i>&nbsp;Adds 20 Hours of Gameplay</a><br /></b></span></li></ul><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/EeFT6qhja-0" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="font-weight: bold;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Okay guys, that's it from me for this week! Be sure to subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and check back here every Saturday for a roundup of&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my Escapist news pieces</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">!</span></b></div></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-24550298033611326152013-07-14T11:52:00.001+09:002013-07-14T11:54:28.100+09:00NEWS: Sunday UpdateBig exciting news from me for this week, my first official escapist feature is now <b>live! </b>The feature is about mechs in videogames. Overall, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. I knew I was going to step on a lot of toes by not including every single mech game and anime, but I feel like I covered the most important stuff. Please check it out below, and I hope to be able to deliver more features in the future.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/features/10472-Metal-Monsters-Mechs-From-Gundam-to-Pacific-Rim"><img border="0" height="153" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7QZFWpVOj9s/UeIO1jqVOiI/AAAAAAAABCU/zf8Jb5oh9MA/s400/metal+monsters.png" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So I'm at week three of four weeks of straight elementary school and the summer vacation can seriously <b>not come any faster. </b>I'm dying here. It's great fun, the days go by quickly, and the kids are great (most of the time) but Lord Jesus am I exhausted at the end of the day. At least i'm getting plenty of exercise.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I'll be visiting Australia from the 2nd of August till the 12th, and I'll possibly be going on a roadtrip to Osaka and Hiroshima after that, so next month you'll probably not see too much of me.</div><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here's last week's news:</span><br /><ul><li><a alt="Street Fighter IV DLC Adds Five New Characters" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125960-Street-Fighter-IV-DLC-Adds-Five-New-Characters" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Street Fighter IV DLC Adds Five New Characters"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Street Fighter IV</i>&nbsp;DLC Adds Five New Characters</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Pokemon X and Y Trailer Reveals Some Version Exclusives" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125946-Pokemon-X-and-Y-Trailer-Reveals-Some-Version-Exclusives" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Pokemon X and Y Trailer Reveals Some Version Exclusives"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Pokemon X and Y</i>&nbsp;Trailer Reveals Some Version Exclusives</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="The Power Jacket MK3 Is a Real-Life Aliens Power Loader" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125924-The-Power-Jacket-MK3-Is-a-Real-Life-Aliens-Power-Loader" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="The Power Jacket MK3 Is a Real-Life Aliens Power Loader"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">The Power Jacket MK3 Is a Real-Life&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Aliens</i>&nbsp;Power Loader</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="New 3DS StreetPass Games Now Available on NA Systems" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125916-New-3DS-StreetPass-Games-Now-Available-on-NA-Systems" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="New 3DS StreetPass Games Now Available on NA Systems"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">New 3DS StreetPass Games Now Available on NA Systems</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Captain Olimar Will Return In The New Super Smash Bros." href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125914-Captain-Olimar-Will-Return-In-The-New-Super-Smash-Bros" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Captain Olimar Will Return In The New Super Smash Bros."><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px;">Captain Olimar Will Return In The New&nbsp;</span><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;">Super Smash Bros.</i></span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Viscera Cleanup Detail Is a Space Station Janitor Sim" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125876-Viscera-Cleanup-Detail-Is-a-Space-Station-Janitor-Sim" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Viscera Cleanup Detail Is a Space Station Janitor Sim"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Viscera Cleanup Detail</i>&nbsp;Is a Space Station Janitor Sim</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Team Fortress 2 Gets Massive Update" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125873-Team-Fortress-2-Gets-Massive-Update" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Team Fortress 2 Gets Massive Update"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Team Fortress 2</i>&nbsp;Gets Massive Update</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Rockstar May be Making PC Ports of Its Latest Games" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125840-Rockstar-May-be-Making-PC-Ports-of-Its-Latest-Games" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Rockstar May be Making PC Ports of Its Latest Games"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Rockstar May be Making PC Ports of Its Latest Games</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="League of Legends' Newest Champion is Lucian, the Purifier" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125838-League-of-Legends-Newest-Champion-is-Lucian-the-Purifier" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="League of Legends' Newest Champion is Lucian, the Purifier"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">League of Legends</i>' Newest Champion is Lucian, the Purifier</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Nintendo Tried to Block Evo Streams" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125837-Nintendo-Tried-to-Block-Evo-Streams" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Nintendo Tried to Block Evo Streams"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Nintendo Tried to Block Evo Streams</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Obsidian Would Love Another Chance at Fallout" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125775-Obsidian-Would-Love-Another-Chance-at-Fallout" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Obsidian Would Love Another Chance at Fallout"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px;">Obsidian Would Love Another Chance at&nbsp;</span><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;">Fallout</i></span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="The Last of Us Sells Over 1 Million Units Per Week" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125774-The-Last-of-Us-Sells-Over-1-Million-Units-Per-Week" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="The Last of Us Sells Over 1 Million Units Per Week"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">The Last of Us</i>&nbsp;Sells Over 1 Million Units Per Week</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Vivendi May Siphon Funds From Activision Blizzard" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125723-Vivendi-May-Siphon-Funds-From-Activision-Blizzard" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Vivendi May Siphon Funds From Activision Blizzard"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Vivendi May Siphon Funds From Activision Blizzard</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125722" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Gearbox Boss: More&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Borderlands</i>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Aliens</i>&nbsp;DLC Inbound</span></a></li></ul><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Story of the week:</span></b><br /><ul><li><span style="background-color: white; color: orange; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19px; outline: none;"><b><a alt="Level 5 Character Poll Seized by Trolls. Level 5 Rolls With it" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125842-Level-5-Character-Poll-Seized-by-Trolls-Level-5-Rolls-With-it" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Level 5 Character Poll Seized by Trolls. Level 5 Rolls With it">Level 5 Character Poll Seized by Trolls. Level 5 Rolls With it</a></b></span></li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/560/560999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/560/560999.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><div><span style="color: orange;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><b style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Okay guys, that's it from me for this week! Be sure to subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and check back here every Saturday for a roundup of&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my Escapist news pieces</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">!</span></b></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-29968494948850751022013-07-07T11:19:00.000+09:002013-07-16T17:14:21.619+09:00NEWS: Sunday Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;">PHEW! It's been a couple weeks since I last updated the blog! Really sorry about that, I've been in over my head at both of my jobs. At school, it's now week three of </span><b style="text-align: left;">four straight weeks </b><span style="text-align: left;">of elementary school. Anyone who's ever taught it knows that it's fun, but it's </span><b style="text-align: left;">so exhausting</b><span style="text-align: left;">! As for the Escapist, I've been commissioned to write a feature article about the history of mechs in videogames. Look forward to seeing that by the end of this week.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>Last week, I went to <a href="http://www.nasuhai.co.jp/">Nasu Highland Park</a>. It's a theme park near where I live that I shied away from going to for the longest time, because a friend of mine who has lived in Japan a lot longer than me told me it was "shit" and to "not bother." I'm really glad I disregarded that advice, because it turned out to be one of the best themepark experiences I've ever had! Sure, it wasn't as glitzy or glamorous as Disneyland, but it was half the price, had little to no lines, and still had some pretty freaking sweet rollercoasters.<br /><br />Check out this video my friend Jerry made about the whole experience:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xW-BSqoImak" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">On to the last couple week's news posts! Sorry to give you such a big dump all at once:</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125060" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Xbox One's Launch Titles Include&nbsp;</span><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Dead Rising 3</i><span style="line-height: 16px;">,&nbsp;</span><i style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Killer Instinct</i></span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125062" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">A Link Between Worlds</i>&nbsp;Is Not a Sequel, But Not a Remake Either</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125064" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Xbox One Games Will Still be Playable When Servers Shut Down</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125067" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">The Witcher 3</i>&nbsp;Features 36 Alternate Endings</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125066" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><b style="outline: none;">Update</b>: Xbox One E3 Demos May Have Been On Windows 7</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125114" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Mad Max</i>&nbsp;Won't be Set in Australia</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125115" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Smash Bros.</i>&nbsp;Director Is Stressed Out Deciding The Roster</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125116" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">3DS System Update Brings New StreetPass Games</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125167" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Screen Australia Injects $6 Million Into Dying Games Industry</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125168" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Rumor: Game Sharing Coming To Steam</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125172" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">The LEGO Movie</i>&nbsp;Assembles in 2014</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125217" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition</i>&nbsp;Pulled From Stores</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125261" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Adam Orth To Give Speech On Online Toxicity</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125262" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">DoTA 2</i>&nbsp;Ditches Beta Keys</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125302" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Bethesda Hasn't Given up Hope on Wii U, Vita</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125303" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Dragon Quest X</i>&nbsp;is Coming to PC</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125304" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Wolfenstein</i>'s Hardest Difficulty Will Make You Cry Blood</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125309" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Armikrog</i>&nbsp;Wii U Version is on The Table</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125361" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Undertale</i>&nbsp;Dev: "Every Monster Should Feel Like an Individual"</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125362" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><b style="outline: none;">Update</b>:&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Saints Row IV</i>&nbsp;Refused Classification in Australia</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125402" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">State of Decay</i>&nbsp;Also Refused Classification in Australia</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125441" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Smash Bros.</i>&nbsp;Director Justifies New Character Choices</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125444" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Broforce</i>&nbsp;Unites 80's Action Bros In 2D Side-scrolling Broship</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125491" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Blood Dragon</i>&nbsp;Sells Over Half a Million Copies</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125523" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Xbox One Designed "With Advertising in Mind"</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125525" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Kirobo Will be Japan's First Robot Astronaut</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125528" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">BioShock Infinite</i>&nbsp;DLC Info Coming Soon</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125530" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Nintendo Loses Complaint Against "wiiu.com" Owner</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125533" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Former Dev:&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">WoW</i>&nbsp;Has Killed the MMO Genre</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125575" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Diablo III</i>&nbsp;Console Version Makes it Easier to Get Loot</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125576" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Walking Dead: 400 Days</i>&nbsp;Out This Week, Free on Telltale Store</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125578" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Minecraft</i>&nbsp;Version 1.6 Out Now, Adds Horses</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125580" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Worms</i>&nbsp;Dev: Why Bother With DLC When You Can Have Mod Support?</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125626" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Journey</i>&nbsp;Dev is Excited For Kinect 2.0</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125627" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Real-Life&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Resident Evil</i>&nbsp;Simulator Comes To Universal Studios Japan</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125670" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Natural Selection 2</i>&nbsp;Adds Female Marines</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125673" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Pokemon X and Y</i>&nbsp;Trailer Shows Off New Features</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125674" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">American McGee on Publishers: "News Flash: Things Cost Money"</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125681" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Final Fantasy VII</i>&nbsp;is Now on Steam (But Not in Japan)</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125685" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">New Study: No Link Between Games and Anti-Social Behavior</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125688" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">ESEA Faces Lawsuit Over Bitcoin Mining Scandal</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125697" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Skullgirls</i>&nbsp;PC Beta is Now Avalaible</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125717" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Satoru Iwata Refuses to Layoff Nintendo Employees</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125719" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Razer CEO: No PS3 Accessories Because I Barely Play Mine</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125720" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Microsoft Struggles to Adapt Xbox One to Japan</span></a></li></ul><div><b>Top three stories:</b></div><br /><li style="text-align: center;"><b style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125311" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Ellen Page: Naughty Dog Ripped Off My Likeness</a></span></b><b style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><br /><br /><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/551/551259.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/551/551259.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></b></li><li style="text-align: center;"><b style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125407" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;">Nintendo Fans Fight For Region-Free Consoles</a></span></b><b style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><br /><br /><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/552/552907.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/552/552907.png" /></a></span></b></li><li style="text-align: center;"><b style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125490" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><i style="outline: none;">League of Legends</i>&nbsp;Oceanic Servers Now Available</a></span></b><b style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><br /><a href="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/554/554387.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/554/554387.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></b></li><b style="color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Okay guys, that's it from me for this week! Be sure to subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and check back here every Saturday for a roundup of&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my Escapist news pieces</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">!</span></b>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-85649942569209251932013-06-15T14:47:00.000+09:002013-07-16T17:13:04.704+09:00NEWS: Saturday UpdateE3 is finally over. What a crazy week it's been. This was my first E3 that I covered for the Escapist and the increased workload I had to deal with was intense. It should all pay off in the end though (literally, as I get paid per article).<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTGiR6yqSiBb8p6VMt5t0F1CZGze_RR2c4JkNXz6_zWUsqKL3GX" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTGiR6yqSiBb8p6VMt5t0F1CZGze_RR2c4JkNXz6_zWUsqKL3GX" /></a></div><br /><br />So what's my opinion on E3 this year? Obviously, there is the Microsoft thing, which completely baffles me. I am somewhat of a Microsoft fanboy (i own an Xbox 360, although how I came about owning one was more of an opportune than deliberate purchase) and even I have to admit that Sony wiped the floor with them. It was just one bad policy after another. I know Microsoft are trying to change the gaming world here, and they knew there would be resistance, but damn.<br /><br />A lot of people compare what they are doing to what Steam did to PC gaming several years ago. I tend to agree with them there. Steam was met with just as much (if not more) resistance than is now facing the Xbox One, but at the end of the day it turned out to be the best thing to ever happen to PC gaming.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQjv50bTfagrnn9LfTR-Yip4uh5jbB7k5r5MlaBcVnA4ReW1bWrhw" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQjv50bTfagrnn9LfTR-Yip4uh5jbB7k5r5MlaBcVnA4ReW1bWrhw" /></a></div><br />Microsoft wants to do the same thing with console gaming, but damn, they could have done a LITTLE bet better PR on it. Maybe eased people more into it rather than just dumping bad news after bad news.<br /><br />Aside from that whole bru-ha-ha, a lot of cool stuff came out of E3. We got to see <i><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/trailers/7454-Titanfall-E3-2013-Announcement-Trailer">Titanfall</a>&nbsp;</i>from the guys who made <i>Call of Duty </i>back when <i>Call of Duty </i>was a competitive PC FPS and not a running joke. If they pull this off, it'll sit besides TF2 and NS2 as a go-to multiplayer FPS for me.<br /><br /><i><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124967-Ubisoft-Details-Watch-Dogs-Multiplayer">Watch_Dogs</a>, </i>with it's hide-and-seek multiplayer and crazy gameplay options looks set to really shake things up.<br /><i><br /></i> There was the announcement of the new <i><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124787-Star-Wars-Battlefront-Announced-For-Next-Gen-Consoles">Battlefront</a>, </i>which doesn't really need to have anything else said about it (fingers crossed for a PC release).<br /><br />And then there was of course, Nintendo's direct, which pretty much hit everything right. Wii U has no games? OK. How about some big first party Nintendo games? Super Mario. <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124829-Super-Mario-3D-World-Features-Cat-Mario">BAM</a>. Donkey Kong. <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124837-Donkey-Kong-Country-Tropical-Freeze-Sees-Dixie-Join-Diddy-and-DK">BAM</a>. Mario Kart. <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/7.410307-Mario-Kart-8-Hits-the-Track-Next-Year">BAM</a>. Oh? You are sick of the bog-standard Nintendo franchises you always see? Well here's <i><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124846-The-Wonderful-101-Gets-Multiplayer-Release-Date">Wonderful 101</a>, </i>a crazy new IP that's about controlling a whole mob of superheroes at once. You want third party? We got third party. <i>Batman. Assasin's Creed. <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124835-Bayonetta-2-for-Wii-U-Gets-New-Gameplay-Footage">Bayonetta 2</a></i><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124835-Bayonetta-2-for-Wii-U-Gets-New-Gameplay-Footage">, which is a Wii U exclusive!</a><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://gengame.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/mega-man-smash-bros.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://gengame.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/mega-man-smash-bros.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Ok we done. NO WAIT HERE'S SMASH BROS. Ok we really done now. <a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/trailers/7469-Super-Smash-Bros-for-Nintendo-3DS-and-Wii-U-E3-2013-Mega-Man-Trailer">NO WAIT HERE'S MEGA MAN IN SMASH BROS</a>!! PEACE OUT BITCHES!<br /><br />As you can imagine, I haven't had too many real-life adventures this week! Next weekend i'm planning on attending a 'scavenger hunt' in Fukushima, which sounds fun.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So anyway, here's the news for last week:</div><br /><ul><li><a alt="DICE Exec: Military Shooter Market Isn't Oversaturated" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125058-DICE-Exec-Military-Shooter-Market-Isnt-Oversaturated" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="DICE Exec: Military Shooter Market Isn't Oversaturated"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">DICE Exec: Military Shooter Market Isn't Oversaturated</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Battlefield 4 Won't Support Mods" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125024-Battlefield-4-Wont-Support-Mods" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Battlefield 4 Won't Support Mods"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Battlefield 4</i>&nbsp;Won't Support Mods</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Super Smash Bros. For Wii U and 3DS Won't Have Cross-Platform Play" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/125023-Super-Smash-Bros-For-Wii-U-and-3DS-Wont-Have-Cross-Platform-Play" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Super Smash Bros. For Wii U and 3DS Won't Have Cross-Platform Play"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Super Smash Bros.</i>&nbsp;For Wii U and 3DS Won't Have Cross-Platform Play</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Nvidia Says PS4 and Xbox One Are Good News For PC Gamers" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124961-Nvidia-Says-PS4-and-Xbox-One-Are-Good-News-For-PC-Gamers" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Nvidia Says PS4 and Xbox One Are Good News For PC Gamers"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Nvidia Says PS4 and Xbox One Are Good News For PC Gamers</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Nintendo's First Free-To-Play Title Will Launch Before March, 2014" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124959-Nintendos-First-Free-To-Play-Title-Will-Launch-Before-March-2014" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Nintendo's First Free-To-Play Title Will Launch Before March, 2014"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Nintendo's First Free-To-Play Title Will Launch Before March, 2014</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="CliffyB Thinks Used Games Are Bad, Sony is &quot;Playing Us&quot;" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124957-CliffyB-Thinks-Used-Games-Are-Bad-Sony-is-Playing-Us" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="CliffyB Thinks Used Games Are Bad, Sony is &quot;Playing Us&quot;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">CliffyB Thinks Used Games Are Bad, Sony is "Playing Us"</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="PS+ Not Required For Free-to-Play Online Games" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124956-PS-Not-Required-For-Free-to-Play-Online-Games" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="PS+ Not Required For Free-to-Play Online Games"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">PS+ Not Required For Free-to-Play Online Games</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Pokemon X and Y Add Sky Battles, Horde Encounters, Fairy Type" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124904-Pokemon-X-and-Y-Add-Sky-Battles-Horde-Encounters-Fairy-Type" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Pokemon X and Y Add Sky Battles, Horde Encounters, Fairy Type"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Pokemon X and Y</i>&nbsp;Add Sky Battles, Horde Encounters, Fairy Type</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Super Smash Bros. Director Talks 3DS, Wii U Version Differences" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124893-Super-Smash-Bros-Director-Talks-3DS-Wii-U-Version-Differences" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Super Smash Bros. Director Talks 3DS, Wii U Version Differences"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Super Smash Bros.</i>&nbsp;Director Talks 3DS, Wii U Version Differences</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="ESA Calls The Cops on Ouya's Parking Lot E3 Booth" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124892-ESA-Calls-The-Cops-on-Ouyas-Parking-Lot-E3-Booth" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="ESA Calls The Cops on Ouya's Parking Lot E3 Booth"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">ESA Calls The Cops on Ouya's Parking Lot E3 Booth</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Sees Dixie Join Diddy and DK" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124837-Donkey-Kong-Country-Tropical-Freeze-Sees-Dixie-Join-Diddy-and-DK" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Sees Dixie Join Diddy and DK"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze</i>&nbsp;Sees Dixie Join Diddy and DK</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Super Mario 3D World Features Cat Mario" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124829-Super-Mario-3D-World-Features-Cat-Mario" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Super Mario 3D World Features Cat Mario"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Super Mario 3D World</i>&nbsp;Features Cat Mario</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="Battlefield 3: Close Quarters DLC Now Free For All" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124823-Battlefield-3-Close-Quarters-DLC-Now-Free-For-All" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Battlefield 3: Close Quarters DLC Now Free For All"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Battlefield 3: Close Quarters</i>&nbsp;DLC Now Free For All</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a alt="PS4 Online Multiplayer Requires PS+ Subscription" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124821-PS4-Online-Multiplayer-Requires-PS-Subscription" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="PS4 Online Multiplayer Requires PS+ Subscription"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">PS4 Online Multiplayer Requires PS+ Subscription</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124819" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Eat Doritos, Drink Mt. Dew, Win an Xbox One</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124801" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">The Crew</i>&nbsp;Adds Boss Fights To Racing Games</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124758" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Redbox Asks For Feedback on XBone, PS4 Rentals</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124757" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">First&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">CoD: Ghosts</i>&nbsp;In-Game Footage Shows Dog Gameplay</span></a></li></ul><ul><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124756" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">World Of Warcraft</i>'s Raids Get More Flexible</span></a></li></ul><br /><div><b>Story of the week:</b></div><div><br /><ul><li style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit; line-height: 19px; outline: none;"><b style="background-color: white;"><a alt="Mega Man Blasts Into Super Smash Bros. Wii U and 3DS" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124834-Mega-Man-Blasts-Into-Super-Smash-Bros-Wii-U-and-3DS" style="line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Mega Man Blasts Into Super Smash Bros. Wii U and 3DS">Mega Man Blasts Into&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">Super Smash Bros. Wii U and 3DS</i></a></b></span></li></ul><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/aX2KNyaoNV4" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><b><span style="font-weight: normal;">Okay guys, that's it from me for this week! Be sure to subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and check back here every Saturday for a roundup of&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my Escapist news pieces</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">!</span></b></div></div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-86438972785885929922013-06-09T16:32:00.000+09:002013-06-09T16:32:43.333+09:00NEWS: Sunday UpdateHey guys,<br /><br />This week's update is a day late once more, because I went to <a href="http://www.hawaiians.co.jp/">Spa Resort Hawaiians</a>&nbsp;yesterday with my good friends Jerry and Joe.<br /><br />It was really nice to get into the pools and waterslides again. I have some great experiences with waterparks - both at Wet n Wild in Australia, and of course, who can forget <a href="http://www.sunwaylagoon.com/">Sunway Lagoon</a> in Malaysia? So, I was understandably really looking forward to this place.<br /><br />Fortunately, my good friend Steven Thompson (of <a href="http://stevesgameblog.blogspot.jp/2013/05/feature-happy-steve-angry-steve-podcast.html">Happy Steve, Angry Steve</a> fame) got us some discount tickets for about 1,000 yen each. This was very fortunate, as the usual price of admission is around 3,000 yen. The second reason this was fortunate was because of the inevitable pay-wall.<br /><br />At the resort, your price of admission covers the pools, the onsens, the "hulu show" and the "spa world" - a series of outdoor themed spas. What it does <b>not </b>cover, is the waterslides. Because who goes to a waterpark to ride on waterslides? The waterslides were 400 yen <b>each ride, </b>or <b>2,400 </b>yen for a day pass. We arrived at around 2pm, and discovered that there was a special "half day" pass from 3pm for 1,200, so we ended up getting that, but were still pretty grumpy.<br /><br />Pay-walls are a phenomenon i have complained about in Japan before. Back home, pay walls don't stand, because people will just refuse to pay them. Most folks would be willing to pay a slightly higher price of admission if it covers literally everything in the park. Japanese people are apparently willing to pay high admission and then<b>&nbsp;still </b>pay for pay-walls on top of that.<br /><br />Pay-walls are particularly ridiculous when combined with things that <b>should </b>be free, like national heritage sites or temples. Seriously. Temples have a pay-wall. They are even considering pay-walling <a href="http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/06/09/70-to-climb-mount-fuji-is-nothing-sacred/">Mt. Fuji!</a><br /><br />But besides that, we actually had a pretty good time. The slides were lots of fun, and the outdoor "edo-period onsen" was a really nice experience. I rate the park 7/10 because of the pay-wall and also because its too crowded (we went on a cloudy, random Saturday and it was super packed. I can only imagine how it must be during the summer vacation).<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-csrTnM7Sehw/UbQtyLrxFnI/AAAAAAAAA8c/NwVEv1iR8rU/s1600/20130608_131504.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-csrTnM7Sehw/UbQtyLrxFnI/AAAAAAAAA8c/NwVEv1iR8rU/s400/20130608_131504.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">On the gaming front, nothing too exciting happened this week. Next week E3 kicks off, and I'm assuming that all the major players are waiting until then to make any big announcements. I'm personally covering the Ubisoft and Nintendo press conferences for the Escapist, but will most likely pick up other stories that my colleagues don't get to.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And here's last week's news:</div><ul><li><a alt="Penny-Arcade: OTRSPOD Episode 4 Out Now" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124755-Penny-Arcade-OTRSPOD-Episode-4-Out-Now" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Penny-Arcade: OTRSPOD Episode 4 Out Now"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Penny-Arcade: OTRSPOD Episode 4</i>&nbsp;Out Now</span></a></li><li><a alt="Assassin's Creed Creator Sues Ubisoft" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124754-Assassins-Creed-Creator-Sues-Ubisoft" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Assassin's Creed Creator Sues Ubisoft"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Assassin's Creed</i>&nbsp;Creator Sues Ubisoft</span></a></li><li><a alt="This is What The 1940's Thought 2011 Would Look Like" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124753-This-is-What-The-1940s-Thought-2011-Would-Look-Like" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="This is What The 1940's Thought 2011 Would Look Like"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">This is What The 1940's Thought 2011 Would Look Like</span></a></li><li><a alt="Capcom Celebrates its 30th with Character Encyclopedia" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124717-Capcom-Celebrates-its-30th-with-Character-Encyclopedia" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Capcom Celebrates its 30th with Character Encyclopedia"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Capcom Celebrates its 30th with Character Encyclopedia</span></a></li><li><a alt="Sony Will Showcase Over 40 Games at E3" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124716-Sony-Will-Showcase-Over-40-Games-at-E3" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Sony Will Showcase Over 40 Games at E3"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Sony Will Showcase Over 40 Games at E3</span></a></li><li><a alt="Fates Forever Reimagines Hardcore Gaming as Tablet-Only" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124670-Fates-Forever-Reimagines-Hardcore-Gaming-as-Tablet-Only" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Fates Forever Reimagines Hardcore Gaming as Tablet-Only"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Fates Forever</i>&nbsp;Reimagines Hardcore Gaming as Tablet-Only</span></a></li><li><a alt="AMD's &quot;Unified Gaming Strategy&quot; Makes Ports Smoother" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124668-AMDs-Unified-Gaming-Strategy-Makes-Ports-Smoother" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="AMD's &quot;Unified Gaming Strategy&quot; Makes Ports Smoother"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">AMD's "Unified Gaming Strategy" Makes Ports Smoother</span></a></li><li><a alt="Diablo III's New Game Director Addresses The Minions" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124667-Diablo-IIIs-New-Game-Director-Addresses-The-Minions" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Diablo III's New Game Director Addresses The Minions"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Diablo III</i>'s New Game Director Addresses The Minions</span></a></li><li><a alt="Humble Bundle 8 Grows 4 Games Humbler" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124634-Humble-Bundle-8-Grows-4-Games-Humbler" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Humble Bundle 8 Grows 4 Games Humbler"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Humble Bundle 8 Grows 4 Games Humbler</span></a></li><li><a alt="Half-Life 2: Episode 4 Could Have Looked Like This" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124631-Half-Life-2-Episode-4-Could-Have-Looked-Like-This" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Half-Life 2: Episode 4 Could Have Looked Like This"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Half-Life 2: Episode 4</i>&nbsp;Could Have Looked Like This</span></a></li><li><a alt="Google Says &quot;No&quot; to Google Glass Porn Apps" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124588-Google-Says-No-to-Google-Glass-Porn-Apps" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Google Says &quot;No&quot; to Google Glass Porn Apps"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Google Says "No" to Google Glass Porn Apps</span></a></li><li><a alt="The Last of Us Multiplayer Pits Survivor Against Survivor" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124587-The-Last-of-Us-Multiplayer-Pits-Survivor-Against-Survivor" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="The Last of Us Multiplayer Pits Survivor Against Survivor"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">The Last of Us</i>&nbsp;Multiplayer Pits Survivor Against Survivor</span></a></li><li><a alt="Papers, Please is a Dystopian Document Thriller With a Free Beta" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124547-Papers-Please-is-a-Dystopian-Document-Thriller-With-a-Free-Beta" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Papers, Please is a Dystopian Document Thriller With a Free Beta"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Papers, Please</i>&nbsp;is a Dystopian Document Thriller With a Free Beta</span></a></li><li><a alt="Valve to Indie Devs: Don't Use Publishers to Bypass Greenlight" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124544-Valve-to-Indie-Devs-Dont-Use-Publishers-to-Bypass-Greenlight" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="Valve to Indie Devs: Don't Use Publishers to Bypass Greenlight"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;">Valve to Indie Devs: Don't Use Publishers to Bypass Greenlight</span></a></li><li><a class="news_archive_title_link" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124543" style="line-height: 16px; outline: none;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: inherit;"><i style="outline: none;">Prey 2</i>&nbsp;Was "A Full Game" When Bethesda Cancelled it</span></a></li></ul><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Story of the week:<br /></span></b><br /><ul><li style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a alt="300 Heroes Rips Off League of Legends, Naruto, Shrek and More" href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124636-300-Heroes-Rips-Off-League-of-Legends-Naruto-Shrek-and-More" style="background-color: white; line-height: 19px; outline: none;" title="300 Heroes Rips Off League of Legends, Naruto, Shrek and More"><span style="color: orange;"><i style="outline: none;">300 Heroes</i>&nbsp;Rips Off&nbsp;<i style="outline: none;">League of Legends, Naruto, Shrek</i>&nbsp;and More</span></a></span></b></li><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></ul><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/RL8Ex5jZwM4" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Okay guys, that's it from me for this week! Be sure to subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and check back here every Saturday for a roundup of&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my Escapist news pieces</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">!</span></b></div></div><br />Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8340075121993190882.post-46333709529512794382013-06-06T10:57:00.003+09:002013-08-25T11:49:50.491+09:00OPINION: Five Gaming Innovations I Wish Were Never Innovated<div class="MsoNormal">As the years go by, games tend to get better. The programming becomes more advanced, the graphics become more photo-realistic and new innovations are introduced that are quickly adopted into the next generation. 90% of the time, these innovations are welcome additions, yet occasionally we’ll get a particularly nasty one that for some reason will stick to the games industry like a dog turd to your brand new sneakers. Here are the top five things I wish developers would just lose their boners over already.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 21.0pt; text-indent: -21.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-AU">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span lang="EN-AU">Regenerating health<br /></span></b><span lang="EN-AU">The third world war has broken out. I’m fighting the Russians/Koreans/generic Arabic terrorists and they have me and my squad pinned. I step out to try and offer some cover fire and I get shot in the face with a shotgun. It’s K, though, because I can just hide behind this wall for a few seconds and I’ll be fine. While health packs aren’t any more ridiculous of a concept (heal gunshot wounds with bandages and painkillers), they at least had the benefit of adding a sense of urgency and care to your gameplay. In the days of<i>Half-life</i>, I couldn’t just stay behind a wall as waves of bad guys slowly got closer. If I got shot, I lost health, and I had to go and find myself a med pack or a HEV battery. I’ll add regenerating ammo to this point too, for the same reason. You have no idea how relieved I was that <i>Team Fortress 2</i> decided to stick with health packs (and the medic).&nbsp;</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VZ9VIXbl1-Q/UEOeMfUu1kI/AAAAAAAAAao/a_EQShw7lDY/s400/54951_orig-685x3851.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VZ9VIXbl1-Q/UEOeMfUu1kI/AAAAAAAAAao/a_EQShw7lDY/s320/54951_orig-685x3851.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span lang="EN-AU"><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 21.0pt; text-indent: -21.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-AU">2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span lang="EN-AU">Knee-high walls<br /></span></b><span lang="EN-AU">I’m playing an action-RPG/third person shooter. The very first room I enter is littered with these pissy little knee-high walls. ‘Whelp, guess it’s time to hide behind cover until bad guys stop running at me.’ This is almost exclusively tied to my first point on regenerating health, but it seems like a game these days isn’t complete unless you can duck behind a knee high wall and blind fire over the top. <i>Gears of War </i>is the main source of this grievance, and while it actually did the cover system pretty well, other games are so intent on copying it that they will occasionally forget that they are supposed to be a <a href="http://n4g.com/news/1094208/resident-evil-6-vs-gears-of-war-3-a-slide-by-slide-comparison">different kind of game</a>.</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://mon0r.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/gearsshooting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://mon0r.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/gearsshooting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-AU"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 21.0pt; text-indent: -21.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-AU">3.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span lang="EN-AU">Open-world sandboxes<br /></span></b><span lang="EN-AU">Don’t get me wrong. I like sandbox games. I’ve always been a GTA fan, and <i>Sleeping Dogs </i>was one of my favourite games released last year. It’s just; sometimes you don’t want to play in the sandbox. Sometimes you want to play on the jungle gym. Sometimes you want to slide down the slide. I really liked the first <i>Red Faction </i>game, but the sandbox of <i>Guerrilla </i>just turned me off. Similarly, I’m not looking forward to <i>Prey 2, </i>because I actually enjoyed the linear FPS plot reminiscent of <i>Doom </i>and <i>Quake </i>that the first game offered. “Linear” has become a dirty word in the games industry, and developers are constantly scrambling to throw together a “sandbox-world” to avoid it.</span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_2wGmIRt1G8/UDdaa_XCx8I/AAAAAAAAALU/JuIZp6THbLE/s1600/2012-08-23_00005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_2wGmIRt1G8/UDdaa_XCx8I/AAAAAAAAALU/JuIZp6THbLE/s320/2012-08-23_00005.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span lang="EN-AU"><!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 21.0pt; text-indent: -21.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-AU">4.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span lang="EN-AU">Quick-time events</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><br />You all knew this one was coming. The famous ‘press X to win’. Quick-time events are a crutch used by bad developers, who make cut scenes that are either too long, too frequent, or too boring to hold the player’s attention, and they are thrown in to offer the illusion of interactivity. When designing a cutscene, all developers should ask themselves: ‘Does this cutscene need a quick-time event to make it work?’ If the answer is yes, then scrap the cutscene and start over.&nbsp;</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.cnet.com.au/story_media/339301409/rainheavy_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://cdn.cnet.com.au/story_media/339301409/rainheavy_3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21.0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 21.0pt; text-indent: -21.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span lang="EN-AU">5.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span lang="EN-AU">Games being designed around Easy mode<br /></span></b><span lang="EN-AU">Hey, you suck at video games. That’s ok. There are video games I suck at too. I’m really bad at fighting games, for example. I don’t have a problem with people sucking at video games, and don’t get me wrong; they should have the ability to make games easier. What I’m complaining about is games being designed around the Easy mode. Games used to be designed to be grueling and tough, and if it was too much, you could make it easier tweaking elements of the game – lowering enemy health bars, giving yourself infinite ammo, reducing the amount of enemies and so on. These days, it feels like most games are designed to be played on the easiest setting, and players wanting an extra challenge can turn the difficulty <b>up</b> and increase enemy life bars and damage numbers or whatever. The problem is, just making things <b>harder</b> doesn't make them more <b>challenging</b>. You understand? The game is obviously not designed around enemies having the extra health they have in hard mode, so there are times that it becomes frustrating rather than challenging. It also leads to developers giving enemies abilities that feel ‘cheap’ (such as instant auto-aim) in an attempt to ramp up the difficulty.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21pt; text-align: left; text-indent: -21pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/18j44a0ks1w2ejpg/ku-xlarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/18j44a0ks1w2ejpg/ku-xlarge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div>So these are my five biggest peeves of the games industry right now. Most of them add nothing to a game's design, and actually detract from it at times. What do you guys think? What gaming innovations do you hate?<br /><div><br /></div><div><b style="background-color: white; color: #4e2800; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Be sure to subscribe to&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/StevenBogos" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my twitter</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for up-to-date news and blog updates, my&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTacoMan3178" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">youtube channel</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;for gaming videos, and check back here every Saturday for a roundup of&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/profiles/posts/Steven%20Bogos?view=articles" style="color: #b5653b; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">my Escapist news pieces</a><span style="font-weight: normal;">! If you liked this article, you might enjoy <a href="http://stevesgameblog.blogspot.jp/2013/05/opinion-always-online-and-you-why-it.html">"Always Online and You: Why it Isn't a Big Deal"</a>, another of my opinion pieces!</span></b><br /><br /><b>Editor's Note:</b> Thanks for reading guys. I'm trying to get back into writing a regular weekly feature. It's hard to dedicate time to these kinds of pieces on my blog that don't earn any money when I know I can just crank out another Escapist news post and actually get paid for it, but I think it's really important to hone my writing by writing various different styles. I don't want to become known as the guy who can only write news, I want to do reviews, opinion pieces and features as well.</div>Steven Bogoshttps://plus.google.com/101451700102598459465noreply@blogger.com0